EggXpert

OK...so I figure what the ...heck... I'll try it.  I ordered Magic Jack.  Couldn't find anything wrong with it.  There was one guy who blamed 9/11 on Magic Jack, but that's about it . 

Here's the interesting part, I have DSL with my telco.... Per their website, I can still get DSL, but it'll cost me $10 more per month.  Even with that, I'd still be saving money.

I'll let everyone know how this goes.  Kind of anxious to give it a try.  The one thing that seems attractive is that you get all of the "features" that the telco charges extra for.

I figure even it this doesn't work out, I'll just go with the (existing) cell phones.

PapaHomer:

 There was one guy who blamed 9/11 on Magic Jack, but that's about it . 

 

Let me guess

Tracer...one of my "favs"...a classic

LOL mine as well.

I only have a cell phone =P. Don't have much use for a land line.

I have to have one for the alarm system, which sucks because I'd prefer not to have a landline. We may ditch that phone whenever we get a dog, but my wife is still pretty paranoid.

Well, I got it.   Set up wasn't bad.   It did take a while to figure that my firewall was blocking it...and how to best allow the traffic through.  Does seem to be very good.   A couple of things that I noticed....let me know if I am missing something...

It wants you to always dial 10 digits...even inside your area code.

The PC won't go in to stand by...which I guess is a good thing if you want to receive calls.

Doesn't seem to work if the PC is on...but no one is logged on.

Now I have to  get the wife comfortable with it. 

Where I live, I've got to do the area code thing as well, both on my FIoS phone and my in-laws traditional line

In my area we have had to dial ten digits for years so I never give it a second thought.  The computer I run the MJ on has me always logged on and I never tried it otherwise.  I hooked up our home cordless phone system to the MJ and used it for several weeks before canceling the Verizon service.  It made my wife feel more comfortable with the switch when she couldn't see any difference in call quality or reliability.  Then doing the math and seeing that we would save over $1,000 a year was all the further nudging she needed.  One other thing to consider is that you can roll your existing home number over to an extra cell phone.  I did this with my old business line for an additional $10 per month on my cell phone bill.  This way I keep the number reserved for future use, if needed.

Yes I have to own a landline cos my mobile phone is always running out of battery.

Stay connected all the time. :-)

 

Yes, my family has one...we have very bad connection at home and have to stay connected with a land line esp. in rainy days...

whitelotus:

Yes, my family has one...we have very bad connection at home and have to stay connected with a land line esp. in rainy days...

What kind of internet connection do you have?

For internet or for the phone service itself?

Hey Daniel...
I was talking about phone service itself....and not how you access the internet.

I pay a lot for phone service (i.e. beyond my DSL) and am probably going to try to drop the phone service from the telco.

Hey Mike

Have you sent faxes using MJ?  The FAQs basically say "maybe".

Post Script... Do you know if MJ will be supported on Win 7?   I would think so...but do you know?

PapaHomer:

Hey Mike

Have you sent faxes using MJ?  The FAQs basically say "maybe".

 I don't fax much bioth the few times i have I just unplug the phone and plug the line into the phone connection of my Canon MP780 AIO printer.  There is a second way I have read about using only software.  It is to plug the MJ into the USB port and say on a laptop, plug the modem connection into the MJ.  Then just fax as you normally would do.  Anymore 99.9% of what I used to receive as faxes comes as email attachments.

PapaHomer:

Post Script... Do you know if MJ will be supported on Win 7?   I would think so...but do you know?

I had Windows 7 on a separate HD for a while and the last software update (happens automatically) let the MJ work with it.  Before that it didn't.  Since then I haven't used windows 7 so I can't tell you if there is any quirks with it.  I didn't notice any the short time I used it.

BTW, how is it working out for you?

So far, pretty flawlessly.  Thanks!

I'm actually quite surprised that people still have land line use (outside of business / home offices). With the amount of minutes that cell phone carriers give you... seems to have no use for land lines any more.

daniel88c:

I'm actually quite surprised that people still have land line use (outside of business / home offices). With the amount of minutes that cell phone carriers give you... seems to have no use for land lines any more.

I totally agree. We don't use our landline as much as I'd like (I'd actually prefer not having it) despite having unlimited calling. But, as I posted earlier, the alarm company requires we have one. So sure, it's only $30-odd a month for the alarm monitoring, but it's really more like $80 when you factor in needing a landline. Kinda sucks. I think alarm companies should offer some sort of service for a few dollars extra a month in place of a landline

Mike

Hmmm..
I can see where this is headed....a low power PC.

I see a lot of web sites on low power PCs.... do you have any suggestions?

I would put something together like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856107034

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144209

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152093

This would cost about $200 and be very power efficient.  Then I would buy a KVM switch and use your current monitor/mouse/keyboard for dual duty between your existing computer and the new one.  Also, you might want to consider getting a netbook and using it.  They don't take much power, are self contained and can be used while traveling.  The netbook would also come with an OS, monitor, keyboard etc. if that is a concern for you.  I have seen them priced in the sub $250 range on sale so the price between the two alternatives are close to the same.

Edit:

I just looked at this bare bones box:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856167032  it has a card reader and I wonder if it would let you boot from an eight or sixteen gig flash card containing the operating system?  If it did then the price would drop and it would probably be more efficient although it would be very slow.

Hm... maybe she meant bad cell phone reception?

MikeJ:

whitelotus:

Yes, my family has one...we have very bad connection at home and have to stay connected with a land line esp. in rainy days...

What kind of internet connection do you have?

 

Hm... maybe she meant bad cell phone reception?

I got my wife and 2 kids a cell and dropped our land line. Got tired of paying for both. Land line was never used except for my son's little girl friends calling 24-7.

PapaHomer:

Mike

Hmmm..
I can see where this is headed....a low power PC.

I see a lot of web sites on low power PCs.... do you have any suggestions?

This might be just what you are looking for:

http://cgi.ebay.com/TermTek-3350-magicJack-Ready-Pre-Configured-Thin-Client_W0QQitemZ280400401697QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCOMP_EN_Workstations?hash=item41492a9521&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14