Death to Exorbitant Phone bills - or- how I am saving $876 per year

Here's another gadget for you.

What the MagicJack looks like

I bought a MagicJack and cancelled my long distance phone service....kept our basic land line and now we will be using only our Magic Jack for long distance.

Now, if you have a cell phone with a really good plan, you probably won't have much use for this thing.

My husband and I like to take our trailer south of the border, and since the cheapest plan one can find in Canada for a dual-country cell plan is still outrageous at best, this little gadget will come in handy for us.

I had a cell phone when they first came out - way back when - but that was when I was working on call nursing.  It was useful for not missing those last minute work calls.  I have regressed since then.

I drastically reduced my cell phone use long ago - still keep it at $10 per month pay-as-you-go for travelling - in Canada - and even then, emergency use only (never while driving).    I don't feel a need to be continually on the phone, or to stay in constant communication with anyone.   I still text once in a while, but have mostly lost my quick texting ability.  When I can type at 80 words per minute - I find it annoying to text.

I kept my basic land-line service at $15 per month and high-speed wireless modem connect at another $15 per month. That's pretty good seeing as how I was, up until now, paying $103 per month for the exact same thing - minus the long distance and a few other add-ons such as call-waiting (annoying) etc.  

The price initially offered was $50 per month (after a 40 minute wait).  I thought they could still do better than that since the *other* company was offering the same thing for $40 per month. 

I was put through to a supervisor manager (after another 30 minute wait) who offered the new rate of $30 total per month.   That's a savings of $73 per month, which translates into $876 per year.  I can live with that.  It was well worth the extra effort.

MagicJack is now filling in that little niche of long distant calls/mobile phone.

What it looks like on your computer screen
You can use your phone or screen to dial

The MagicJack has been around for several years, and I installed it on my friend's computer in CA quite easily last year.

The sound is great, I haven't had any of the issues that you might see people complaining about online at various sites.  I find it clearer and more reliable than Skype, and since most of the people I have to communicate with don't use Skype and it is simpler for them to use a phone - I like to use the MagicJack.

The little device plugs into the USB port and uploads the hardware immediately on its own.  It's the size of a flashdrive or memory stick.  You can call forward to any local number, or just have voice messages sent to your email address as mp3 type files, or collect over the phone just as you would with your land line.

Friends of mine who moved to Germany for a year used it for their calls home (anywhere in North America)  with no problems.   You can pick whatever area code you wish - which allows family in that area code to call you on a local number.



All in all, for what you pay and the service one gets....it is well worth the $20 per year.