magicJack: PC to Phone Jack

I'd give the magic jack 20 stars if i could.Simply the BEST $38 I ever spent - PERIOD.Anyone complaining about it just doesn't have the right internet connection to use it, or the brains to control their bandwidth. Here's some of the highlights:1) You get FREE VOICEMAIL that always works, even if your PC is turned OFF.Yes, you can record your own greeting for the voicemail. You can access the voicemail from ANY phone just by dialing your magicjack phone # and entering a 4 digit pin. OR better yet even, every time you get a voicemail, magicjack EMAILS you a copy of the message in WAV format so you can just play the message right on your PC - no need to dial into voicemail AT ALL. How cool is that?2) FREE caller ID3) Your number is UNLISTED by default - you can even make up any fake name you want when you sign up to be SURE. No more calls from ANYONE you don't want.4) FREE alphabetized list of contacts on your PC - just enter all your important phone numbers ONCE, and you can dial anyone with ONE CLICK - no more dialing.5) In case you are wondering, in some cases ONE MAGIC JACK can make all the phones in your house work. This will be especially easy for you to set up if you currently have phone service through your internet provider. Just find the master phone jack in your house the cable modem is plugged into, and take the plug out of your cable modem and plug it into your magic jack instead and VOILA - ALL THE PHONES in your house run off the magicjack now.6) Amazingly, you can send a magicjack to ANYONE anywhere in the world, and they can get a local US number, so if you have family overseas you can kiss your long distance phone bills GOODBYE.7) Another STELLAR feature - you can choose your own phone number from any available number - first you PICK the area code, and one you want, doesnt have to be local, then you choose the next 3 digit prefix, and you can choose from any available last 4 for a few extra dollars, or let them be assigned at random for free. You can also use the handy search tool to search for any available number in any area code - say for example you want a number like (area code)MER-MAID - just type mermaid in the search and you will get a list of all available choices.I paid far more money for service through my ISP and got ZERO input into the phone number. Now with magicjack I have a GREAT number that is easy to remember.8) The sound quality is BETTER than I had before using my internet provider's phone service. Sounds as good as a landline to me. The KEY is to make sure you have the required minimum bandwidth AVAILABLE. That means you have to stop your downloads, or at least limit their speed, when you want to talk on the phone for optimal sound quality. I'd bet this is what all the bad reviews haven't quite figured out.9) Your phone bill is almost 50% taxes if you make only local calls. You won't pay ANY of those taxes with a magicjack. I am saving $200 a year, and I use the phone less than anyone else alive. If you use the phone a lot you can save thousands.10) You can even sign up for 5 years if you want to and magic jack will give you a 30% discount so you only pay $14 a year. BEAT THAT!11) EASIEST install of any tech product I ever put in. Just plug it in to a USB port and off you go. If the magicjack software does not auto install, just go to their website and download and run the upgrade file (FREE).I am running Windows XP and have the LOWEST SPEED cable internet service available from COX (also the cheapest of course:)).SIMPLY PUT - An INCREDIBLE savings, a wonderful product, one of my best buys EVER.Thank you MAGIC JACK. Enjoy this party while it lasts folks because once the telco companies start wondering where all their customers went, they'll find a way to end our fun.UPDATE 1/10/11:Yes it is still a great buy overall, BUTI am slightly miffed with magicjack over several issues:#1: Upon renewal after year one, they charged an extra 4.8% to cover what they call "misc taxes etc.", so I had to pay $20.91, NOT $19.95 as advertised, and there was ZERO advance notice of this markup.#2: none of my phones ring - their tech support (which is a total joke I might add) claims this can be solved by adding a powered USB hub. Frankly I don't trust their tech support any farther than I could throw them, so I'm not going to waste money on a hub to try this out.#3: Their tech support is a total waste of time - don't bother calling them.They will make you jump through silly hoops reinstalling their software and you will still have all the same problems you had before.#4: Certain phone numbers CANNOT be called from a magicjack, and some users will find that some people have problems calling them as well. Magicjack tech always finds a way to blame other carriers for these transient issues, but it is pretty clear to me that the magicjack network availability is spotty at best.In summation, at this juncture I still endorse the product overall since you cannot beat $21 a year for unlimited domestic long distance, BUT be advised to expect some trade-offs and keep a cellphone handy for situations where magicjack will not work as promised. I would suggest you only sign up for ONE YEAR at a time even though you might find their five year offer for 30% less per year tempting. Given my experience to date, I'd expect things to deteriorate over time and I'd prefer to keep my long term options open. Same way I feel about getting married...

We finally gave the boot to Charter Cable, who was charging us in excess of 200 bucks a month for phone, internet and cable. I decided to give MajicJack a whirl for the phone portion of it: 45 dollars for the jack and the first year of service. The sound quality is a little soft; in other words the volume is a tad on the low side. I don't know if I should be faulting MajicJack for that or not, as the MajicJack is entirely dependent on your internet connection. My internet connection is DSL, so that may be the issue. But even with that, it is acceptable.I was talking to my brother (2,000 miles away) yesterday and I asked him how the sound quality was: he said it sounded fine to him. So I give MajicJack the thumbs up as far as what others are hearing.I ported my old phone number over from Charter (which is not listed in the MajicJack listing, but all you have to do is manually specify their name as CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS and you are good) to MajicJack-it cost me 20 bucks to have MajicJack do it, but even if you factor that in, my total outlay is 65 dollars for the first year. No comparison to the 40 dollars a month Charter was dinging me.Overall, I would say it is an excellent deal, but you DO give up a tad on the sound quality. But then again, you are paying about 1/20th the price! If you are on the fence, give it a try-definitely worthwhile in my book. Five stars, even with the low volume./*-/*-/*-/*-/*-UPDATE: 9-28-11After running MajicJack for a while now, I have a couple comments:*Volume is DEFINITELY on the low side; just barely acceptable. You have to crank your phone volume all the way to the max to hear clearly.*Sound quality does leave a bit to be desired. I do have issues with caller dropping out occasionally (very similar to what happens on your cell phone) and I also sometimes get an echo while talking. I can hear myself echoing, but the other party does not hear it. So while being annoying, it is not that big a deal.*Must leave the PC (and MajicJack software) running all the time. Occasionally we are unable to place an outgoing call, requiring us to go to the PC, force the phone to shut down, restart it, and all is good again.*Last point: I ported over my old phone number to MajicJack. They were up front about there being a 20 dollar charge. No issue there. The problem arose because they dinged my credit card TWICE. After going round and round with them, I finally just called my credit card company and had them reverse the second charge. I still haven't heard back from MajicJack.In summary, MajicJack beats the pants off any other competition, hands down. But there is indeed a price to be paid-in sound quality and lack of responsiveness. Even so, MajicJack has paid for itself after only 3 months. Would I buy it again? Knowing what I now know about the other IP phones, probably not. Other solutions are out there that are in the 200 dollar range and do not require tying up a PC. But this is ABSOLUTELY the way to go if you are planning on traveling overseas and want to call back to the states for free.