More Authentic Magic Jack Reviews
There is no doubt that the MagicJack has caused a huge uproar in the VoIP world over that last couple of years. Some people rant about a “Magic Jack Scam” while others claim it’s the greatest invention since sliced bread. One thing seems unanimous among users, it’s not best to rely on Magic Jack USB device as your only phone source.
I decided that I would add another post on the Magic Jack phone device since the first post has well over 100 comments. If you do not find enough feed back on this post then grab a cup of coffee and check out our original post on Magic Jack Reviews. Those interested in cutting costs on their cellphone bills should also look out for Ymax’s newest product to hit the shelves some time this spring. It’s called the FemtoJack and will allow you to route cellphone calls through your computer just like the Magic Jack allows you to do with landline calls. If you would like more information then feel free to check out our FemtoJack Reviews article.
I just picked up a Magic Jack and set it up on both my Desk top computer and my Laptop .. this has got to be the most amzing product ever.. i love it! on my Desk top it did not run as well as on my laptop .. on my Desktop it has some cutting out and was not working too well .. but on my Laptop it runs very nice and smooth . voice quality is excellent and very little cut out . its like using a land line honestly. amazing. and so easy.
Below are actual Magic Jack User Reviews.
I feel this has to do with the Desktop machine specs . as i’m running the same operatiing system on both machines Windows XP Pro. you need at least Windows service pack 3 installed to run Majic Jack. there are alot of variables that determine call quality. Machine speed , USB port speed , Ram , internet connection quality .. so i was using the same internet connect .. local high speed wireless service. my Laptop has a 2 gig (2000 mghz) processor speed , 500 meg ram. .. my Desktop isn’t as fast as my laptop and was the cause of the cutting out and poor voice quality.
Desktop specs – 1 gig processor , 300 meg ram . maybe a lower speed usb port on that machine too. so that combination did not work good for the MagicJack .. with the Laptop tho its excellent. and i would highly recommend it.
I have been using the MJ for about 2 1/2 yrs now, would I trust it as my only source of phone service…NO…but it does work sometime’s well other time a little crappie but it works none the less……One thing that bug’s me a bit is in their TOS it states that if you use the magicjack 20 times more then the average user they can (and will from what I have read in other complaint blogs) shut your free sevice down and offer you a pay by minute plan…almost forgot to mention that they wont tell you what the average usage is, not even if you get one of their service reps. in the chat room,s…..which by the way the customer service sucks “all canned answers to your questions”, kinda odd, a phone company without a phone number to get help !………Good thing is it can and does save you a lot of cell phone minutes, more then 20 dollars worth….
Free Local/Long Distance Calls
100% Risk Free – Try Before You Buy
We moved 8 months ago and were debating whether to get a home line since we both have cell phones. I got a Magic Jack and have been using it as a home line since then. I have experienced some problems – early on, they were worse. On some calls it would drop syllables – like a cell phone breaking up – on other inbound calls, the person could not hear me but I could hear them. I haven’t really experienced that lately. Often when I pick up to dial, I get no immediate dialtone. I hang up once or twice and get a dialtone. No big deal.
I like being able to receive voicemails in my inbox. If you are the type of person to let your calls go to VM anyway, and/or like to be able to get your home voicemails while at work this may be a plus.
I am using a 3-handset Uniden wireless system. I plugged the base system into the MJ, and have the other handsets elsewhere in the house (the other 2 do not require phone jacks). This works very well. I was also pleasantly surprised that the Caller ID function on my phone does display incoming and missed phone numbers from MJ! I never used Caller ID before, but now that it’s free, it’s a nice bonus.
I am running this on an extra older PC that we don’t use much. My kid plays computer games on it sometimes but otherwise it’s for MJ. We made sure that MJ launches automatically on restart in case of shutdown, we have it running on some kind of lowered power mode, and I suppose we could shut it down it at night to save even more power. I don’t want calls at night anyway, and we have our cell phones for emergency calls.
100% Risk Free – Try Before You Buy http://www.magicjack.com
Comments (17)
Do not waste your money. If it looks too good to be true it probably is. I was initially hopeful, only to have more problems than it was worth. Now it simply will not work and the online assistance says the prob is on my end. Hmmm…
Ripoff. I had Magic Jack for 3 weeks. They shut down my account for making 51 calls. Every Magic Jack user must count all the calls they make every day and never go over 50. If you do, they shut you down. No refunds, no reinstatement, just ripoff. This is how they can afford to do business and provide unlimited phone calling for 19.95/yr. They don’t. Stay away from Magic Jack. Oh, and the call quality was lousy anyway.
I got MJ with 2 years paid service. Bad idea. Custumer service is bad, I asked for refound never got it. I am unable to talk for more than 10min at the time. The only pro i can give is that if i get a voice mail I get it on my email. My advice do not spend your money on MJ.
It don’t run on linux (but you can load a VM), also use a lot of resources.
The MJ call quality is terrible. Even at $20/ year it is a rip off. Save your money…MJ SUCKS.
Magic jack issues:
1) Slows even fast PCs (generally and esp. during boot up) – Don’t blame it all on Vista, blame it on applications that screw up PC like magic jack. May decrease PC life and hence hidden cost.
2) after 3/4 rings goes to magic jack voice mail. Can’t adjust the setting to let my telephone’s ansering machine do the job. Very bad when you have a nice answering machine or you want to answer the call.
3) needs usb powered hub for getting caller id on the telephone unit (additional devices and cost)
Ipod and gps unit can be driven by the USB port. But magic jack says, ” give me more power for me to work right”
4) trial usage period starts before product activation or shipment reception. Not a big deal if the product is good. Especailly, with other problems listed here, this is a real concern.
5) when calls are made from magic jack to other phones, receiving phone can’t get caller id (i.e. magic jack number)
6) Ugly GUI on PC, which can’t be even hidden/minimized. Gives even the greatest looking PC desktop a cheap finish/look.
7) magic jack application interferes with other telephone/chat applications like skype. Very bad software, just like the magic jack website.
Try nettalk. At least, it won’t interfere with the PC.
Plain and simple……save your few bucks.
1..There is no online 24/7 support. Just try clicking on the “speak to someone in seconds” button. You’ll get a list of problems, and if your issue isn’t listed, guess what…tuff cookies.
2..When your computer comes out of sleep mode or hibernation, you’ll have to reload the app all over again.
3.. If for some reason there’s noise in your cable line or your ISP is have problems with service, you’ll have dropped calls or massive static.
4.. Then there’s the dreaded echo glitch.
5.. When a number is called and you’re prompted to enter a number for a certain department on your phone keypad, the other side doesn’t here the entry.
So, don’t ever sign up for anything that does NOT have phone tech support. That’s a dead give away that your gettin into something dirt cheap and will regret later.
Take care all.
Loved MagicJack when I used it. However, due to illness did not use the product for sometime. When I contacted the company to reinstate/reactivate my account, I was told I had been REVOKED.
I dont get why that lady spent so much time trying to port her # to vonage. Just get a new #. However, i will say it was very entertaining to read her post. My guess is that she is a “poser” making the post simply to discredit MJ. I mean seriously, who in hell is gonna spend that much time writing that kind of review.
Here I am gonna make you rotflyao. This is a real review. I have good things and bad to say about MJ. I dint get it when they promised shipment and they had to send out “another” unit. took 2 weeks. One thing I learn the hard way is the clock was ticking on my 30 day trial and i dint get the unit for more than 2wks tick tick. customer service was not so good but better than it is now. Then i could get a live op but now i cant and i am actually wanting to renew my service.
when I used Magic Jack I thot the service was as good as a land line or cel. I did have some voice mail issues but the phone i hooked up had answering machine so that is wat i did for messages. Based on other reviews I would probably not rely on Magic Jack as sole phone. But i think it is fine if backed up with cel phone. I did let my service lapse so the only reason I am not signing back up is I cant figure out how and I cant get a live operator.
In answer to the sleep mode issue making MagicJack not work till reboot of PC or Magic Jack device, I dont remember having that problem, but I think it would be great as a business phone. just set sleep mode for a long time. That was my main use for Magic Jack. tho i did call my aunt LD for free and that was good.
Would I renew? Well I am trying but cant figure out how since my service lapsed and I cant get a live person. other issue is I wanted to actually have more than one MJ for business purposes running ads and such. But they did not know if a second MJ would workyou had a 2nd computer on a router
The magicJack advertises itself in Canada without stating a thing about the recurring charges. I thought it would be more like NetTalk’s TK600. No matter. Let the buyer beware. That one is on me.
When I tried to set it up anyhow, I could not get a Quebec number. So much for being available for Canada. I went with an Alabama number in order to finish the process and speak with a CSR who promptly told me how I’d have to use my “one free number change”. I STILL could not get a Canadian number. What’s more, the CSR was downright rude to me as I was trying to give her damned company some money. And they keep spamming me over a year after I returned the stupid thing.
This is a stunningly poor “invention” by Dan Borislow here! You may as well put Skype on a USB stick. That works at least. As for Borislow, he is a piece of work. Check out his Wikipedia page. Such a huge ego to use Wikipedia for self-promotion!
Magic Jack, customer serivce is terrible, they can not seem to understand my magicjack has been paid for, been registered to a email that is good, for about 2 years now! but for some reason they got the email letter mixed up while trying to reset my password and can not get it fixed!
I gave up! told them jus tto let the account expire! heck I hav emore time in getting this working than it is worth!
Sure glad I read some reviews before ordering more than one MJ or signing up for a 5 yr. plan.
The one unit I purchased, mostly out of curiosity, has been installed for 2 days now and for me it’s a non starter because it requires that the PC is on 24/7 (Didn’t read that anywhere on their site!!!).
Going into sleep mode maintains the dial tone but no in or out calls are possible. Worse, when coming out of sleep mode the MJ window says “Ready to call” but now there’s not even a dial tone. Worse still the mouse doesn’t work anymore either. The fix is either to restart the puter or unplug the MJ, go back into sleep mode, sign back in and then plug in the MJ again and wait for it to download and start up again.
Bottom line: It only works if the puter stays up which consumes a lot of electricity and causes the puter to suck in and collect more dust. Turning off the PC when thunderstorms are near leaves one without a phone and leaving it on could cause serious damage no matter how good your protection is.
I guess trying to get my money back is a waste of my time and energy based on what I read in the forums and so I’ll just right it off with the knowledge that I can participate when people talk about MJ and phone options.
We signed up for magic jack a year or so ago and when it was a pos and didnt work (my husband is a network engineer so it wasnt an installation mistake) we signed up for vonage (which works great). However, when we tried to transfer our number from mj to vonage this is what happened the second time i contacted them:
Please wait for a site operator to respond.
You are now chatting with ‘Iza’
Your Issue ID for this chat is *****************
Iza: Hello, how may I help you?
Conrick: I am being told by vonage that you will not transfer my number to their service
Iza: We are working to give you the option to transfer or “port” your existing local phone number to magicJack, for a nominal fee. We do not have an exact time frame yet.
Conrick: I was in this chat 2 weeks ago and was told all i need to do is have them send a letter of request and you will allow it
Conrick: yet you declined it twice
Iza: I understand that.
Conrick: at no point did you ever say that you cannot transfer a magic jack phone number to another provider. Infact it says all over your website that you will do it.
Conrick: how do i get the number transferred
Iza: Do you mean transfer your magicJack phone number to another carrier?
Conrick: yep
Iza: Okay.
Iza: One moment please…
Iza: Thank you for waiting.
Iza: Please ask vonage to send us an email regarding the transfer of your number.
Conrick: ive already done that
Conrick: i want to talk to a supervisor
Iza: Okay.
Iza: One moment please…
Iza: I am transferring you to one of our top 10% agents as rated by our customers. Please hold while I transfer you.
Please wait while I transfer the chat to the best suited site operator.
You are now chatting with ‘Loren’
Your Issue ID for this chat is 888888888888888888888
Loren: Hello Conrick. My name is Loren. To better assist you, let me put you on hold while I read the previous chat you had. Thank you.
Loren: Thank you for waiting, Conrick.
Loren: Do you mean that you want to keep your vonage phone number as your magicJack phone number?
Conrick: no
Conrick: i am discontinuing mj and i want to transfer my phone number to vonage
Loren: So you want to transfer your magicJack phone number to Vonage, is that correct?
Conrick: YES
Loren: Okay.
Loren: Please contact your phone carrier line and let them send a mail to us. Send it to this address below.
Loren: magicJack
Loren: LP PO Box 6846
Loren: West Palm Beach, Florida 33405
Conrick: IVE ALREADY DONE THAT
Conrick: come on
Conrick: seriously
Conrick: can i speak to a superviser
Conrick: you arent even listening
Conrick: you clearly didnt read the chat
Conrick: i want to speak to a supervisor
Loren: I am the last person you can deal with, Conrick.
Conrick: then why dont you try helping me
Conrick: or is this part of the scam
Conrick: where you never actually intend to transfer the number over
Conrick: you just give me the run around until i stop asking
Conrick: ive already had 2 requests mailed over to you and you denied both of them for no reason
Conrick: first you tried to say that it was because the address didnt match. so i fixed that, and now you just told vonage you dont transfer numbers
Conrick: which is illegal
Conrick: so if you arent going to transfer the number then you can just tell me and i will spend the rest of the day making sure i write terrible reviews on every single website that talks about magic jack
Loren: May I ask to what address they send the letter request?
Conrick: the one you just listed
Conrick: obviously
Conrick: you received it and denied it twice so obviously you got it
Loren: One moment please…
Loren: Thank you for waiting, Conrick.
Loren: May I ask how was the replied stated?
Conrick: what is this you are doing? youre asking questions that are completely stupid
Loren: reply**
Conrick: they sent you a letter and they requested the number transfer
Conrick: knock it off
Loren: Please provide me the correct message that our engineers replied to you.
Conrick: what are you talking about
Conrick: what message
Conrick: no engineers replied to me
Loren: So why did you say that we declined your request?
Conrick: where is it you think an engineer would reply
Conrick: BECAUSE I ASKED VONAGE FOR THE 900 TIME
Loren: Okay.
Conrick: MAGIC JACK NEVER EVEN BOTHERED TO EMAIL ME
Conrick: you didnt even bother to look up my account yet
Conrick: you are just wasting my time
Conrick: can you have the number transfered or not
Loren: Please hold on for a while.
Conrick: its against fcc regulations to deny porting a number to another carrier
Conrick: if you do not port this number i will contact the fcc
Loren: Thank you for waiting, Conrick.
Loren: I will be making a report about your concern and our Technical Engineers will be checking on this. Please do provide me with the needed information below:
Loren: Customer name….:
Loren: Email address….:
Loren: MJ Number……..:
Loren: Sales Order Number……:
Conrick: 8888888888888
Conrick: 888888888888888
Conrick: 88888888888888
Conrick: and i dont have a sales order number ive had this piece of crap for over a year
Loren: It is okay.
Conrick: this is your way of ending the chat but really you have no plan to do a single thing as its now all over the internet that you dont transfer numbers
Loren: Thank you.
Conrick: so im contacting every single mj review board and the fcc
Loren: Let me put you on hold while I make the report and submit it to our department concerned.
Conrick: which is probably the garbage can
I recently got out of a cable TV package deal where I was basically paying $40/mo for phone. I did a lot of research (looked at magic jack and some more expensive ‘buy it’ hardware deals like ooma) and eventually went with a voip service. I chose voipo.com and was able to get it for an effective rate of about $7.50/mo (taxes included) by signing up for a two year deal. Works great. the other thing i realized is that not only did they port my number for free, they also sent me a hardware unit and if it ever goes bad…well i send it back to them and they give me a new one. i can live with $7.50/mo…..just my two cents
phone call clarity is very poor! it breaks up , cuts out, would not recommend!
Are you kidding me? This was NOT an easy 1,2,3 set up. I tried to do it myself and ended up with a Area code for another state & when I tried to change it? I was gonna get hit with Another fee to do so. I was told i should have asked for help to set up my system, why when its supposed to be so EASY? That is the biggest RIP OFF I have ever seen and would NEVER Recommend any one to buy a magic jack
2600 magazine just had an article about how terrible magicjack quality is. Seriously a dirt cheap voip solution is 100x better