Magic Jack!

[Scrable]

Magicjack, If you don't know it's a great jack you get a free number on it you can choose the area code, its 19.95 a year the 1st year is free, it cost $39.95 plus shipping, you can also add 4 additional years for just $49.95.

Is whats really cook about it, you can plug any phone you have in to it and you will get a dial tone, even better i can go traveling and bring it with me and have my number where ever i go and have a computer.

You can by MagicJack by going to there site which is MagicJack.com and ts really cool. Try it out and comment what you thing about it.

Call forwarding, call waiting, voice-mail, directory assistance, phone number, caller id is all free. Works with XP, Vista and intel Mac's.

[Other Guy]

Do you have one? I have been trying to find someone who used it for awhile. How good is the quality? Any issues?

[Scrable]

Mine is pretty good. It all depends on your internet connection, i'm using wireless on Verizon dsl 768 kbps

[Mordy]

I've used one, in fact a coworker of mine offered me his because he switched to a "real" voip line.

Apparently he wasn't too happy about it. If I recall, there were only a select few area codes that can be chosen, and ours (845, rockland county) wasn't one of them.
The biggest downside is that its not a network jack in it of itself, its USB powered (at least his was) and uses your PC's net connection. So if your computer is off, you don't get any phone calls.

That being the case, you might as well get a skype phone- more area codes available and its more established.

[shemaya770]

How much do you pay when you start out? Is their only a 19.95 a year fee? Whats the catch how is it so cheap? Vonage cost around $30 a month. What does Vonage have that the Magic phone doesn't?

[Mordy]

Vonage is a real VOIP box that is based on industry standard technology.
Magic Jack is a USB key sort of device that piggy backs off your computer and its internet connection, and was created by a retired engineer as a hobby.

If you want a real phone line replacement, you're probably better off with a real SIP-based voip line such as broadvoice, vonage, viatalk, etc... (by the way, vonage is one of the more expensive SIP-based voip lines because it was the trend-setter).

If you just need a second line, or perhaps a business phone, or not sure you really need a phone line on a regular basis, I'd say go for the magic jack. Just remember, it relies on your computer being on and connected to the internet, as opposed to other real SIP services which give you a box to attach to your phone line. Its more like Skype in that regard, and in fact, I would compare this service to Skype back in the day when they first started offering flat rate calls to/from landlines, and charged 19.99 per year. It could be used as a landline replacement, but its not exactly the same thing.

[shemaya770]

If you want a real phone line replacement, you're probably better off with a real SIP-based voip line such as broadvoice, vonage, viatalk, etc... (by the way, vonage is one of the more expensive SIP-based voip lines because it was the trend-setter).

Whats the cheapest voip line available, that has good connection?

[Mordy]

I personally use Broadvoice for my home line. Its just under $20 per month, but the reason I'm with them is that they allow me to swap between multiple devices (that means basically if I'm travelling, I can run a SIP application on my smartphone or laptop, and essentially bring my home phone line with me). Services like Vonage allow this only if you pay $5 extra for an "additional line" on your account.

Some people don't like Broadvoice, but I've been personally pretty happy with them. I also know some people who've used Viatalk, who always have promotions like $199 for the year... your best bet is to look up reviews on google on all these services and pick one.

[Eli]

I used VoicePulse when I was in Israel for a year and it worked very well. They only have a few people working in customer service so sometimes the wait time can be long, but on the flip side when you call and say "Hey John it's Eli" and they know who you are...that's priceless. Sorta like what it's gonna be with me and Cingular one day very soon, or Levi and Continental.

[Mordy]

Broadvoice was like that for me. I got them right after I got married, and the tech support rep would remember me and ask how the family is doing.
I loved it.

Those days are long gone, though. They're a bigger company now, but they've still be nice to me. I've heard others hate them, but until they do something that upsets me, I'll stick with them.