Magic Jack

Getting Magic Jack Beta For Free

Magic Jack Internet Phone is now in Beta, and if you purchase your Magic Jack through the magicjack.com website, you will get a free 30-day trial. During that 30 day free trial, you can make as many free local and long distance calls as you like. Make sure you install your Magic Jack and try out all the features as soon as possible after receiving it.

This is how the 30 day Free Trial works:

  • Go to magicjack.com, click on Free Trial.
  • Give all the necessary information, including a credit card (Visa, MasterCard or Discover).
  • The 30 day Free Trial begins the day you place your order.
  • Make all the calls you want, try out all the features such as the Voice Mail, Call Waiting and Caller ID. Have your friends and family call your new Magic Jack phone number to make sure it is working properly.
  • After the 30 day Free Trial, your credit card will be charged $39.95 plus $6.95 for shipping and handling. This includes the cost of the Magic Jack device, and the license to use it for a year to make free local and long distance calls within the United States.

Magic Jack is created to work with Windows Vista, Windows XP and Mac Intel operating systems, so be sure that is what you are running on your computer before you order. Also, you will need a broadband or internet connection, Magic Jack is not designed to work with dial-up internet services.

If Magic Jack isn’t what you wanted, then visit magicjack.com/returns.html and fill out their return form to receive an RMA number. Return the Magic Jack so that it is received back within the 30 days and your credit card will not be charged. You will still be responsible for the shipping charge to ship the Magic Jack to you, and also the return shipping. Keep your packaging that the device was originally shipped in until you are sure you are keeping it, as you are required to return magicJack in it’s original packaging.

Hopefully, you won’t need to use the return service. I’m very satisfied with my Magic Jack and do plan on renewing it for another year when that time comes. Happy Free Calling!

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A/C Powered USB Hub Fixes Magic Jack?

After having my Magic Jack Internet Phone about 6 weeks, I started having problems with it. First it wouldn’t stay connected, constantly starting up and then disappearing. I quit using it to make phone calls as I feared that the call would get cut off. Then my computer started freezing up. I tried everything else first, and then the light bulb went off - unplug the Magic Jack! Voila, no more compter problems, but what to do about my cheap phone calls? Research on the internet suggested getting an A/C powered USB hub to solve the problem. So, that’s what I did, went to eBay and found one for $6.98 that included free shipping and it arrived yesterday. Since I was too busy yesterday to mess with it, I opened it up this morning and plugged in the new USB A/C powered hub, and then plugged my magicJack device into it. Works great now, I made a long distance call to make sure it was working all the way. The softphone screen is also staying connected. I did try to fax with it, but my fax program is not recognizing the device as a modem. I didn’t bother trying to tweak things to make it work, as officially, sending faxes are not supported with the Magic Jack. That is not a big deal for me as I never need to send faxes.

As my Magic Jack was loading, it gave me a message that it was also being updated. There are a few tiny changes to the softphone screen and it had a new message, here is the pic of it below:

MagicJack Softphone Screen  I clicked on the button that says “Try Us Now Click Here” and it took me to my magicjack account. From there you can pre-purchase minutes for international calling. It only offers buying $5 or $10 worth at a time. In looking at the call rates, it seems like most of the rates to Europe are 2 cents a minute, other places in the world cost more. But if there is someone that you call a lot, or would if the rates weren’t so high, buy that person a magicjack and send it to them. All they’ll need is a computer with a high-speed internet connection.

Even with the problems I was having now fixed, I still would not get rid of my landline phone. Saving money on long distance calls for now is sufficient for me.

So, if you’re having problems with your Magic Jack not working correctly, try buying an A/C powered USB hub and see if that solves your problem.

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Magic Jack Review

Magic Jack is the latest in VOIP technology. Simple and easy to use, Magic Jack Internet Phone is cheap and affordable for just about anyone who would like to save on their phone bill. I purchased it for myself as I live out in the middle of nowhere, and my telephone company does not provide long distance service. Tired of using calling cards and dialing a bunch of numbers just to get a busy signal or answering machine, I decided to give Magic Jack a try. The first 30 days are a free trial, and I could always send it backif I didn’t like it and my credit card wouldn’t be charged.

The Best Features of Magic Jack

  • Free Local and Long Distance Calling. Anywhere I call is long distance, so this is a real money saver for me. Saves on using up your cell phone minutes while you’re home too.
  • Free Voice Mail. The Voice Mail option is straightforward and easy to set up and use. You will also get an email notification that you have voice mail. There are also options to set up voice mail messages for family, work and friends.
  • Free Phone Number. Not sure is this is a “best feature”, one usually receives a phone number at no extra charge when setting up a telephone service account.
  • Free Directory Assistance. I never use this, but if your regular phone company charges you, there’s another savings on your phone bill.
  • Free Caller ID. If your phone company charges you for this, this is another way you could save a few bucks a month by having a Magic Jack.
  • Free Call Waiting. Same as above, another way to save some bucks.
  • Good Call Quality. I’ve been impressed at the clearness of my phone calls. No one can tell I’m using anything other than my regular landline telephone. No static, no skipping, calls haven’t been dropped. I like it.

The Worst Features of Magic Jack

  • Free Directory Assistance: This is kind of cheesy. When you click on the 411 button on the Magic Jack dashboard that pops up on your computer, it takes you to a web site to look up telephone numbers for free: http://www.free411.com/index.php. If you dial 411 from your phone that you’ve got hooked up to Magic Jack, you have to listen to an advertisement first before you can get to the assistance. If it is going to take some time for their search, you get to listen to more advertisements.
  • Having software downloaded to my computer. The Magic Jack screen that is called a “softphone” is something you can’t get rid of from your desktop, although you can minimize it. Kind of a minor annoyance, but worth it to me because of the free phone calls.
  • 911 service. Haven’t had to use it, but since this is such a new company and the program is still in beta, I wouldn’t depend on their 911 service. It might be perfectly fine, but that’s not something I want to figure out in the middle of a life or death emergency. You do have to register your address where you are using your Magic Phone in case you do need to use their 911. I’d keep a landline phone just for this.

Although overall I am very pleased with Magic Jack, I’m not planning on getting rid of my landline telephone service anytime soon. Magic Jack is still in Beta right now, so expect a few glitches and problems to iron out along the way. But at only $39.99 for the first year (which includes the cost of the Magic Jack USB device and the software), and $19.99 a year after that, you really can’t go wrong with trying it out. Costs more than that to go out to dinner, unless you go to Taco Bell like I do!

Do you own a Magic Jack? I’d love to hear some of your comments about it. I do moderate the comments,  to keep spam and unrelated junk away, but any comment you have about Magic Jack, good or bad will be approved…just keep it clean please, this is a family oriented website.

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