In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple of
months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st
year's service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.


Lew

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple of
months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st year's
service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.

What?? You don't own MagicJack?? LOL

What I have heard is that if it works, you are fine. If it doesn't, you are
screwed. Like many modern companies, there is NO service of any kind.

But for a few bucks, it is definitely worth the risk for many people.

On Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:52:17 -0700, "Lew Hodgett"
wrote:

Lots of folks have problems with it here, but mostly with wireless phone
service..
Those with "land lines " have better luck..

In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple of
months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st
year's service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.


Lew



mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple of
months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st year's
service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.


My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you need
to buy is a web cam.

Leon wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

--

-Mike-

On Sep 17, 9:18*am, "Mike Marlow"
wrote:
Leon wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
.. .
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.

My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. *It's not the ideal transport.

--

-Mike-


I have talked to a few people VOIP and the quality varies immensely.
Some have such awful echo's as to be unusable. Some are as clear as a
bell and one particular number I talk to can be great, noisy or echo-y
without there being any reason as to why. My BIL is overseas (Far
East) and he will call and the first thing he'll ask is how the
connection is. If it sucks, he calls right back and often it will
change up or down.

Robatoy wrote:


I have talked to a few people VOIP and the quality varies immensely.
Some have such awful echo's as to be unusable. Some are as clear as a
bell and one particular number I talk to can be great, noisy or echo-y
without there being any reason as to why. My BIL is overseas (Far
East) and he will call and the first thing he'll ask is how the
connection is. If it sucks, he calls right back and often it will
change up or down.

VoIP is still in the refinement stages across all carriers, but this is VoIP
over the public internet. I'd expect a lot of quality issues with it. Is
your BIL using the public internet for his VoIP, or is he going through a
carrier?

--

-Mike-

"Mike Marlow" wrote in
:

Robatoy wrote:


I have talked to a few people VOIP and the quality varies immensely.
Some have such awful echo's as to be unusable. Some are as clear as a
bell and one particular number I talk to can be great, noisy or
echo-y without there being any reason as to why. My BIL is overseas
(Far East) and he will call and the first thing he'll ask is how the
connection is. If it sucks, he calls right back and often it will
change up or down.

VoIP is still in the refinement stages across all carriers, but this
is VoIP over the public internet. I'd expect a lot of quality issues
with it. Is your BIL using the public internet for his VoIP, or is he
going through a carrier?

I use Skype to call my sister in France. Mostly, no problems whatsoever.
The worst is generally a slight delay.

--
Best regards
Han
email address is invalid

On Sep 17, 11:26*am, "Mike Marlow"
wrote:
Robatoy wrote:

I have talked to a few people VOIP and the quality varies immensely.
Some have such awful echo's as to be unusable. Some are as clear as a
bell and one particular number I talk to can be great, noisy or echo-y
without there being any reason as to why. My BIL is overseas (Far
East) and he will call and the first thing he'll ask is how the
connection is. If it sucks, he calls right back and often it will
change up or down.

VoIP is still in the refinement stages across all carriers, but this is VoIP
over the public internet. *I'd expect a lot of quality issues with it. *Is
your BIL using the public internet for his VoIP, or is he going through a
carrier?

--

-Mike-


From his hotel using his laptop. So I would say public internet.
When he calls from his office, which he seldom does, it is always
crystal clear.

"Mike Marlow" wrote in message
...
Leon wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

Tons of folks are using VOIP commercially. The primary limitation is the
quality of your ISP for interoffice or external calling. Where its really
used on the commercial end is over their "private" WAN or VPN. If a company
has offices in different areas, they set up their phone systems to use the
net for VOIP between systems so calling somebody at the Mexico office,
Arizona office, or Chicago office is just an internal extension number on
their phone system. This is not magic jack however. These are systems
designed to optimize network traffic for VOIP. Also, they use them
internally to create VOIP extensions locally over their LAN, and even
virtual extensions on computer workstations on their LAN just using a
headset. Most commercial VOIP systems charge per seat to license the
software, but there is atleast one open source system out there that I have
heard of if you have good IT guys who don't mind actually earning their
salary. Call centers really use this sort of thing to a big extent.

On Fri, 17 Sep 2010 09:18:11 -0400, "Mike Marlow"
wrote:

Leon wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

Damnear -every- time someone calls me via VOIP or a cell phone, I hear
dropouts and get at least one disconnect. Neither is ready for prime
time. Call any tech support line and listen to the broken music
stream to see how well VOIP technology is doing. The tech is telling
you the exact keystroke or spelling a web address when there is a
sudden 3 second silence and they wonder why you're having trouble
understanding them (not to mention the BritIndian accent.) Suckage!

Portable phones are subject to fading, and the occasional glerp, but
they don't have the dead silence of cellphone dropouts.

Given both my experience from the other end and friends' experiences
with Magic Jack, Skype, and other VOIP, I won't be adopting the
technology any time soon. I have a cellphone in the truck for
emergencies and use it about 15 minutes a year, tracking down client
houses when they've given me the wrong address or bad directions.

I much prefer the solid performance of a landline, thanks.

--
Some people are like Slinkies ... not really good for
anything, but you can't help smiling when you see one
tumble down the stairs.

On 9/17/10 9:18 AM, Mike Marlow wrote:
Leon wrote:
"Lew wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

You can try it yourself from Google now for free, all you need is a
microphone and speakers on your computer. And of course a gmail account.

http://www.google.com/chat/voice/

--
Froz...


The system will be down for 10 days for preventive maintenance.

FrozenNorth wrote in news:i70582$sb5$1
@news.eternal-september.org:

You can try it yourself from Google now for free, all you need is a
microphone and speakers on your computer. And of course a gmail account.

http://www.google.com/chat/voice/


Haven't tried google, but Skype works fine. From Jersey to France through
Verizon FiOS.

--
Best regards
Han
email address is invalid

FrozenNorth wrote the following:
On 9/17/10 9:18 AM, Mike Marlow wrote:
Leon wrote:
"Lew wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

You can try it yourself from Google now for free, all you need is a
microphone and speakers on your computer. And of course a gmail account.

http://www.google.com/chat/voice/


Google phone and Skype require both the caller and reciever have a
computer and either Skype installed or a Google gmail account.
Magic jack connects to regular land lines and cell phones. The recipient
does not need a computer to recieve or initiate a call, they answer or
initiate calls on their regular phone or cell.phone.
Calls made to a MJ owner whose computer is off, get an email notifying
them of the missed call.
i.e.

Dear magicJack User:

You received a new 0:10 minutes voicemail message, on Wednesday, September 01, 2010 at 03:19:51 PM in mailbox my MJ phone number from caller's phone number.

To access your voicemail:

Double click the attached .WAV file, or dial your magicJack telephone number from any telephone and press the "*" key at the welcome prompt. You will be asked to enter your voicemail password.

You may also click on the "VMAIL" button on your computer's magicJack display and then press the "*" key at the welcome prompt. You will be asked to enter your voicemail password.



--

Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
In the original Orange County. Est. 1683
To email, remove the double zeroes after @

Google phone and Skype require both the caller and reciever have a
computer and either Skype installed or a Google gmail account.


What? Where did you get this false information?
I just used googlevoice to call my wife at work, which is a land line.



--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com

---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply

On 9/17/10 1:50 PM, willshak wrote:
FrozenNorth wrote the following:
On 9/17/10 9:18 AM, Mike Marlow wrote:
Leon wrote:
"Lew wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

You can try it yourself from Google now for free, all you need is a
microphone and speakers on your computer. And of course a gmail account.

http://www.google.com/chat/voice/


Google phone and Skype require both the caller and reciever have a
computer and either Skype installed or a Google gmail account.

Google does not require the receiver to have a computer, just the
initiator of the call. Goes out via VOIP, at some point it will connect
with a regular land line.

--
Froz...


The system will be down for 10 days for preventive maintenance.

On 9/17/2010 1:50 PM, willshak wrote:
FrozenNorth wrote the following:
On 9/17/10 9:18 AM, Mike Marlow wrote:
Leon wrote:
"Lew wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.

You can try it yourself from Google now for free, all you need is a
microphone and speakers on your computer. And of course a gmail account.

http://www.google.com/chat/voice/


Google phone and Skype require both the caller and reciever have a
computer and either Skype installed or a Google gmail account.

Skype can initiate calls to and receive calls from any conventional
telephone. There is a fee charged for calls that are not Skype-to-Skype
though.

While Google voice requires a computer or supported mobile device to
place a call, the device used to set up the call does not have to be one
that is involved in the actual conversation--the connection can be from
just about any phone to just about any phone. There seems to be no fee
charged for this for calls within the US.

For an example of how it works, I called a friend of mine just now using
Google voice. I entered his number and told it to use my home phone. A
moment later my land-line phone rang, I picked it up, listened to his
phone ring, and we had our conversation.

Magic jack connects to regular land lines and cell phones. The recipient
does not need a computer to recieve or initiate a call, they answer or
initiate calls on their regular phone or cell.phone.
Calls made to a MJ owner whose computer is off, get an email notifying
them of the missed call.
i.e.

Dear magicJack User:

You received a new 0:10 minutes voicemail message, on Wednesday,
September 01, 2010 at 03:19:51 PM in mailbox my MJ phone number from
caller's phone number.

To access your voicemail:

Double click the attached .WAV file, or dial your magicJack telephone
number from any telephone and press the "*" key at the welcome prompt.
You will be asked to enter your voicemail password.

You may also click on the "VMAIL" button on your computer's magicJack
display and then press the "*" key at the welcome prompt. You will be
asked to enter your voicemail password.

"Mike Marlow" wrote in message
...
Leon wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.


My BIL swears by it, he got rid of his regular telephone land line and uses
a dumbed down DSL of sorts, it runs at 756 mbps IIRC, and he uses it for
conference calls with an attorney that he works with, they both use it, to
avoid cell phone usage.

On 9/18/2010 9:33 AM, Leon wrote:
"Mike wrote in message
...
Leon wrote:
"Lew wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.



My BIL looked into that but now uses a free internet program, all you
need to buy is a web cam.

I'm curious what people are experiencing in quality with voice over the
public internet. It's not the ideal transport.


My BIL swears by it, he got rid of his regular telephone land line and uses
a dumbed down DSL of sorts, it runs at 756 mbps IIRC, and he uses it for
conference calls with an attorney that he works with, they both use it, to
avoid cell phone usage.

If you've got any kind of broadband the problem with voice would be
latency, not bandwidth.

Lew Hodgett wrote:
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple of
months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st
year's service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.


Lew


Will it support 4 phones scattered about the house plus one in the
shop, and an answering machine?
--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

Feudalism: When its your Count that votes!

Gerald Ross wrote:
Lew Hodgett wrote:
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st
year's service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.


Lew


Will it support 4 phones scattered about the house plus one in the
shop, and an answering machine?

Sure. You plug the MJ into your computer and any number of telephone devices
into the MJ. The telephone plug on the MJ should be functionally identical
to a POTS incoming trunk line.

"HeyBub" wrote in message
m...
Gerald Ross wrote:
Lew Hodgett wrote:
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple
of months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st
year's service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Have fun.


Lew


Will it support 4 phones scattered about the house plus one in the
shop, and an answering machine?

Sure. You plug the MJ into your computer and any number of telephone
devices into the MJ. The telephone plug on the MJ should be functionally
identical to a POTS incoming trunk line.

Maybe, but I would think it has a REN limitation just like a regular phone
line does. Been a while, but I think a POTS line in the US is only required
to have a REN of 4 or 5. Many rural and even suburbian exchanges don't even
have that high of a REN. Also, you have to understand that every phone
device you plug into it is powered of the USB port of your computer. I
would think if you wanted this type of application a multi extension
cordless with built in answering machine would work the best as it would not
have a REN of more than 1 since each cordless ringer is powered off its own
internal battery.

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...
In the SFWIW category, I bought into the MagicJack package a couple of
months ago.

It performs as advertised.

Inital purchase is $40.00 which covers MagicJack hardware and 1st year's
service.

Add a cheap hand set or even a head set and you are done.

After that it is $20/year for unlimited phone service.

One point to note. If you buy an extra years package you have to go in and
manually add it to your account. I paid for a five year extension discount
when I got mine, and after the first year my jack went dead until their tech
people told me I had to add my package to the particular jack on-line.

An international plan is available at extra cost.

One caveat:

Your puter must be up and running for Magic Jack to function.

I read a couple sites about a "hack" for Magic Jack using a particular
router so that your unit runs off the router instead of your computer. It's
a direct violation of your TOS though. Its up to you if you want to follow
up or not. I leave my computers on all the time and only use my Magic Jack
as an overflow for outgoing calls anyway. The resident ap does not seem to
use excessive processor time when you are not on an actual call.

BTW, the installation is straight forward, even this dummy had no
problems.

I found it to be pretty straight forward as well, but a buddy of mine who I
loaned it to try out over a weekend had an absolute hissy fit over the idea
of how it works, and tried to claim it didn't work for ****. He gets it in
his mind how he "wants" something and if it isn't that way its broken. LOL.
His ISP provides upto 8 gig burstable and he never tests less than 2 or 3.
I get about 500-600K and it works fine for me as long as my wife and son
aren't both on-line gaming at the same time.

No, I have no vested interest in MagicJack.

Me either. I think if I was doing the limited budget traveler thing I'ld
plug one into my laptop and use it anyplace I could find a free hotspot.

Have fun.

Going fishing this afternoon. I plan to have fun. Might even catch a fish
or two.

Bob