I’ve written about cheap calls to and from the Philippines a couple of times and each time I mentioned Skype as what I considered the best solution. A number of people have left enough comments about magicJack being better and cheaper than Skype that I decided to do a little research.
What is magicJack?
“magicJack” is a computer USB-enabled device that, in combination with the telephone service of the YMAX Corporation, provides a voice-over-IP (VoIP) service to the United States and Canada for a flat yearly fee. A high speed Internet connection is required. The device allows you to plug a conventional land line telephone directly into it. The software is contained within the USB device, but it adds or modifies Windows registry keys. I understand it works on Windows and on Macs, but I don’t see it as being compatible with other Unix-based systems (like Linux or BSD).
Skype, on the other hand, is completely software-driven. Notwithstanding the availability of Skype phones, one end of the communication link requires a computer running Skype. Skype phones won’t work in the Philippines. Heck, regular cell phones only work part of the time in areas outside of metro Manila.
Unlike magic Jack, Skype can be used with a connection as slow as dial-up, just like other instant messengers with voice capabilities. In my experience, Skype calls are clearer than both Yahoo voice and Windows Live/MSN voice services.
Drawbacks
According to several sources, magicJack uses advertising to make the service as cheap as it is and tracks calls to provide more relevant advertising. I don’t know about cheap. The device runs about $40 and the service is about $20 per year (both are in US dollars). If you’re calling from the US to the Philippines and you don’t have a local number provided by magicJack to call, the calls are 18 cents per minute — you call can cheaper with a phone card. I understand you can buy international long distance minutes from them for less, but why would you? And what’s this about advertising? I don’t want advertising in connection with any phone service.
I wouldn’t trust the device to last very long in the Philippines. Due to factors such as heat, humidity and corrosion, electronic devices tend to crap out quite a bit here. Although computers tend to last a while, along with USB thumb drives, I’ve seen a number of portable home phones quit working due to corrosion and a few didn’t last more than six months.
Skype costs me about $6 per month (or about $72 per year). That price includes a local number for where my wife currently lives in Arizona. Because of the one-country plan, it’s good for calls between the two of us (at no additional cost ever), but I have to pay additional charges if I want to talk to my son in Germany. Of course, if I talked to him frequently, I could just set up another one-country plan.
With Skype, my wife calls me with her cell phone and I call her on her cell phone. I use a headset with my PC, but I’m sure I could figure out a way to use a corded or cordless phone with it if I wanted to do so.
There are drawbacks to both services and I won’t go into any more detail about it. In my opinion, Skype is the better choice for me. I use it to call banks, relatives, etc. in the US and they have a number they can reach me at and it doesn’t cost them a thing. There may be a local number available with magicJack, but they don’t list which area codes they have available so I can’t even speculate.
Tell Me I’m Wrong
Go ahead and try to tell me I’m wrong or that magicJack would be better for me. My wife will be returning to the Philippines in a little over a month and would bring the magic Jack device with her if I choose to go that route. Convince me. If you can’t, then it’s really no loss as far as I’m concerned. Anything’s better than standard international long distance charges.
[Note: I keep wanting to spell magicJack as "majicJack" (with a j instead of a g and I don't know why) and with or without a space doesn't really matter, so forgive me if I misspell it later on.]
Hey RT,
You might find it useful to read this review: http://tech.spotcoolstuff.com/internet-telephone/magicjack-skype-vonage … it’s one of the most informative and balanced that I’ve read.
Todd
My latest blog post: Baby Jaiden Has Her Own Blog
That review was much longer than my post, but it came to just about the same conclusions. Vonage isn’t a player in my case, so I’m satisfied that Skype is the next best in the review (and cheapest in my case).
Hi RT,
yea, with that magic jack, I think the whole “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is” thing applies.
I’ve had vonage for about 4 years now, since I was stationed in Korea … and for the most part have been happy with it. I guess now, they are a bit more restrictive about using it from overseas.
I really do need to download and try skype one of these days … if for no other reason than to more easily connect “live” with some of my Internet friends.
Todd
Sir/Madam,
Thank you for that blog. You can’t put a good man down for trying, can you blame us Agents for at least making a possible sale? What we are trying to say is that we are offering you the BBD’s. Unauthorize dealers and distributors of MAGICJACK in the Philippines has cost our Company to lose sales, simply because they are cheaper, and we are taking legal action.
$35-$40 MAGICJACK are all disposable, WITHOUT 1 YEAR WARRANTY, WITHOUT CUSTOMER SUPPORT, and WITHOUT FREE USB REPLACEMENTS. But PRIME Authorize and sole distributor in the Philippines offers you much more than what you already have.
Anyway, We are glad that you are enjoying Skype.
Yours Truly,
PATRICK
Callcenter Agent (Outbound)
PRIME
I was thinking of the magicjack ads the other night and why people are willing to spend the money for their service when skype exists. I bought my latest Toshiba and it has a camera in the lid and already setup for skype. I cannot find any reason not to use and be very pleased with the service and prices. When I see ads for Vonage and others vs. skype, I am thinking to myself, “What a waste of money”. Since I live in the states and don’t do any out of the US calling, it is so cheap one might wonder whether it is too good to be true but I am convinced that despite it should be too good to be true, it is true, Skype is the best deal going and will continue to use their service. If you are building a new website presence where you need a phone number, the 3 months for $12. for a dedicated phone no. cannot be beat. I get reception where other phones won’t work. A Client of mine that has techies all over the globe also agree. Esp. in Latin American countries, they tell me that is often the only thing that works. Great article! John Mauldin
I’ve used skype for a while and think its great. Any other product would have to be really good to convince me to change, but magicJack may be worth a try.
I find it such a pain in the ass that Skype phones won’t work in the Philippines, sofor me any alternatives have to be looked into. Thanks Todd for your link to the review page.
For myself MJ has been great. In fact we (myself and the company I work for) are in the process of getting rid of Vonage, and Verizon and going exclusively with MJ. We’ll expand the functionality by hacking it to work with asterisk. That’s just so we can have it functioning in a business setting, but for home use it works fine out of the box.
The advertising in negligible. On the MJ application window they put up some ads. I rarely see that window. It’s hidden behind putty windows and browsers. I you go looking for it, of course it is there but it’s not intrusive.
It’s hard to beat a $40.00 for two years of unlimited long distance calling. The device itself was $25 so I guess technically I paid $65 for two years of unlimited long distance. Considering my phone bill was $45.00 per month it looks like a pretty good deal to me.
Call quality is good. I won’t say great, because like any SIP device it can from time to time have issues with echoing and bandwidth saturation, but putting downloads on pause seems to clear it right up.
Here’s a list of area codes available (since you mentioned not seeing one) with MJ.
I’ve used Skype but have to say I wasn’t impressed with it. But by all means if that works for you then that is what you should use.
It looks like most of the area codes I deal with are covered. I’m still going to stick with Skype for the time being, even if MJ ends up being better in the long run. I have other factors to deal with that make it better suited for me. (Like patchy DSL, a computer with less than the ideal amount of memory, a phone line that loses the dial-tone for no reason at all, etc.)
Thanks for the post! We were considering MagicJack, but will probably need to weigh other options.
I have often wondered about the magicjack program. Right now I have Vonnage for local and long distance. As far as VOIP is concerned, they suck something awful…thats why I havent switched yet.
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Hi,
I’m the writer of the review mentioned in the first comment. It was with great interest that I read your post. And I totally agree–we came to similar conclusions.
By chance, I just wrote a review of another internet calling service called Ooma. It doesn’t work for calls originating outside the US. Calling to the Philippines from the US costs 18 cents through ooma–same as MagicJack and Vonage. (The Philippine authorities charges VoIP providers a lot for access to their network, which is why all the internet calling rates are comparatively high).
Altogether, I think you’ve found the best solution with Skype.
My latest blog post: Is Ooma Worth Your Moola?
I am considering buying a magic jack.
I heard there was a lot of connection problems with magic jack, does anyone know if this is true?
Thanks!
Mike
My latest blog post: Residuals & Royalties Introduction Video
Hi. I am using skype for a long time..and enjoying it I think it is the best connection….
Thanks for the information.
I think Skype is just the greatest thing! I use it for personal and professional chats/video calls and it’s all free! I love it!
I’ve been using Vonage at home for five years now. The sound quality early on had some problems, but it has been fine for the last four years.
I also have a MagicJack but I haven’t really used it that much. You do need a fairly fast computer to run it if you have anything else running on the same machine.
You may also wish to take a look at comfi. Their rates are generally better than Skype. The call quality is equally good.
My latest blog post: Honda and partners develop a technology that controls robot by using human thought alone!
RT,
Thanks so much for this post. My husband just lost his job and were debating between MJ and Skype. I am concerned about not being able to use a regular phone set with Skype. Using the headset and being plugged to the hard drive can be very limiting. With MJ I can use my cordless phone.
With Skype, you can do just a yearly payment? I understood you also had monthly payments attached.
We are shutting off our AT&T service this week so we need to make up our minds quick.
My latest blog post: How to Make Money Online Social Networking
I don’t know if Skype has a yearly fee versus a monthly one. I just have them automatically take $6 USD from my account every month.
With either solution, you still have to have your computer on to use it. I find a headset with my PC just as easy as any kind of phone, but your preferences are probably different.
RT,
This is just such a new concept to me and when you get my age it is just harder to wrap your head around new technology sometimes. I guess it really doesn’t matter which one I start with since there is no contract involved.
My husband still has his cellphone so we do have alternatives. Most seem to agree Skype does work better so I may as well give it a try.
I really appreciate everyone’s input here on Magic Jack versus Skype.
My latest blog post: How to Make Money Online Social Networking
Skype is way to expensive as compared to MJ and does not come close to what MJ has to offer, based from my experience. Magic jack has much more features and the call forwarding works awesome. The unfortunate thing about MJ is that you need a very good pc (preferably dual core or better) and an awesome broadband internet – I’m not sure about macs because I do not have the money to afford one when I can have 2 PCs for the price of one mac. I own 4 computers with different processors – 2 amds and 2 intels. My desktop and 17in laptop both have amd processors, and I have noticed that they do not work very well with Magic Jack. For some reason when I used MJ on my amd-vista laptop or amd-xp desktop MJ’s memory of phone numbers erase and the call just sounds awful. What I find strange is that when I plug the same MJ with my intel computers they work fine – MJ’s memory of phone numbers stay intact and the calls are clear.
Furthermore, with my experience with visits outside the US, I have found my MJ to work in China and japan with a great broadband-internet connection. Both countries, at the hotel where I had stayed, offered ethernet but no wireless. To my amazement . . . calls which I had made with MJ from China and Japan to the US worked like a charm. My calls made back to the US, through MJ, was so clear, my friends did not believe me when I told them I had made the call outside the US. Try doing that with skype, you can’t. If you bring your skype account elsewhere it will not work appropriately. I had experienced this in Ireland before MJ. When I made calls in Ireland to the US, skype started to drain out my skype credits. The same experience held true for Japan.
Unfortunately, the MJ product is not perfect. MJs Customer care is just horrible – it’s just chat based and they do not have a call center. Everytime you present a problem to MJ’s customer care you are immediately advised to update MJ via their site.
I’ve owned MJ for a year now and I completely love it. I was willing to gamble $46 for the MJ and my gamble has saved me money over skype. Before skype, I recall spending over $100 year for basic features – skype-phone number, unlimited calling, and voice mail(I don’t understand why skype couldn’t just keep it for free) and I hated that survey-pop up which had asked me to rate skypes quality.
I was never able to find a solution for MJ with my AMD computers – by the way my laptops operate wirelessly and my desktop operates wired via ethernet connected to a wireless router. I tried using solutions on MJ’s un-official and official websites by opening udp ports in my router and assigning ports on my firewall – none of them made MJ work better with my amd computers. After a month of trying to find a solution for AMD computers I just gave up.
A year has passed and now I am finding MJ offered through the US’s most popular electronics retail store, Best Buy. I’m not sure what the return policy is with Best Buy and MJ, but if you would like to try something cheap and would like to connect with friend or business people in the US while being outside the US, I can assure you . . . with the right computer and right broadband internet connection . . . you will not go wrong with MJ. It comes with a phone number, caller ID, call forwarding, 3-way calling, phone connection, voice mail, and a cheesy yellow pages to find business phone numbers.
I hope this helps someone.
Thanks for reading
Shurem447s
Just renewed my magicjack for it’s second year of service in the Philippines. Works great, however I do not leave it plugged in 24 hours a day. I use it when I need to call has voice mail, 3 way calling, allows you to select area code in US. Very satisfied with the initial cost $39.95 (first year service included) and renewal ($20.00 per year)
No, but I imagine if you can get a wireless headset, that something similar to cordless phone could be set up.
The best thing is MJ is CHEAPER than Skype.
for the SKYPE its a MONTHLY basis while MJ it is YEARLY.
So in SKYPE you are obliged to pay MORE rather than MJ.
You can use any phone in MJ while skype you just use headset…..
Youre calls in MJ is clear but it is said that our technology is getting beter and better so at least you will get your the best computer you can get as long as you have a good conection with your Internet and a good PC the MJ is the BEST for YOU…
hi guys,
Sorry if I have not read everyting here. I read most of the messages. I live in Ireland and my girlfriend lives in Manila. My current mobile service provider is making a fortune from me on my mobile calls. I am looking for the cheapest mobile call plan. I have been thinking about sending my girlfriend a skypephone (3G) to make skype > skype free calls and sms. I did readon the first message that “skypephones will NOT work in Philippines” Is this true. If so I guess i will source the cheapest call card for my calls/
Thanks for your advice.
Mike
If your girlfriend doesn’t have her own computer and Internet connection, I’m sure she has access to an Internet cafe. All of the computers I’ve seen at the cafes have Skype on them. You can do what I did and purchase the one-country plan from Skype and set it to Ireland. It costs me about $6.00 USD per month for mine. She can call your number from there, you just can’t call her (unless you can get a local number through Skype, in which case it’s a little more expensive). I still think it would end up being much cheaper and reliable than phone cards.
I think that Skype is not only better but also more convinient. You can get it on your mobile phone instead of having to carry around an extra thing and having to have access to a computer.
Mark from buy to let mortgage deals
I have been using MJ here in the Philippines regularly for about a year now and I`m very satisfied. My husband is in the US and MJ has made our communication easier in a very cost effective way. We talk everyday, without thinking of phone bills. Unlimited minutes for only $20 A YEAR — that`s a no-brainer. Nothing cheaper than this. When I first read about it, I thought this is too good to be true…and we have proven it to be real. I`m renewing my subscription in a couple of weeks.
I have a Skype dual mode phone in my house in the US. I pay $3 a month for it. No other phone line. My son uses his PS3 in Manila to call anytime he wants for free. In addition, I port the number to my Google Voice for customized greetings and translation of the voice mail to email (text).
I can run the Skype client on flash drives (duplicating the MJ dongle for free), and even my phone for over seas travel For the latter, I use WIFI mode only to avoid charges from the phone company.
So please remind me….. Why would I use Magic Jack?
Oops! I forgot.
Skype costs $0 of you don’t have a US phone number or Voice Mail.
My son also has a wifi Skype phone I gave him for travel (no phone charges there either).
If you want to calculate true charges, count the electricity charges running your computer 24/7 .. That’s why I use the dual mode phone.
And in Emergencies, I can send free SMS to the PI using Google Voice.
I brought 2 MagicJacks and 2 telephones when I came to the Philippines last year. I gave one to my girlfriend, and the other to her aunt. The aunt’s husband lives and works in Houston, about 10 miles away from me. Te Jannah was able to call her husband’s cell minutes after I set her up.
Cle Dodong and his wife were so impressed by the features and costs of the device, he ended up buying one for himself, since he only had a cell phone before. I set up both MagicJacks with Houston phone numbers, so calling the Philippines is a simple local call.
The downside to the device is that it requires your PC to be on, and the MJ software to be running to receive a call. The connection is pretty good, and it has been getting better as the company gets more successful.
You have the ability to call any phone number in the US or Canada for a flat rate of $20.00 per year. Your wife can also call you by simply dialing a number in the city of your choice (at setup – allowed to change once). If for some reason your phone is not hooked up, the call will go to your voicemail. If you get a phone with caller ID, the MagicJack will show you who’s calling. For $40 + a phone from WalMart, it’s a tough deal to beat.
Since you already pay for DSL, this gives you a way to call all your friends and relatives back in the States, landlines and cellphones, with no per minute charges. You’ll still have to deal with the 13-14 hour time difference!
BTW – you probably have a much better broadband connection than where I was. Both the MJ’s I setup were using SmartBro wireless broadband in Dipolog City, Zamboanga del Norte. I would imagine the network connections in the Manila area are a bit faster, especially DSL.
Hey, i got 3 magicjacks, 1 for my sister in manila, 1 for my girlfriend in bacolod, and another 1 for my sister who lives in bacolod as well. i as just wondering if i can send this magicjacks to the Philippines straight from the package. or do i still need to plug these magicjacks to my computer. Me and my parents migrated here in Florida for about 2 months now. I really miss my girlfriend considering that we have’nt been able to talk much since I got here.
We dont have a telephone here in my aunt’s house, so could you help me on what i would do? i am a little confused, what if i sent these magicjacks to the Phil. and it would turn out not to work? hope anybody can help me. Thnx and God bless!
please email me at junesilva12@hotmail.com
After doing a little more research, magicJack still does not support Linux. They have promised Linux support for the last 2 years, but it has never come. There are several people who have found workarounds for Linux, but they don’t seem to last longer than the next OS or MJ software upgrade.
Besides the $20 vs $72 per year price advantage, magicJack allows you to hook up a portable phone, so you can use it away from the PC. Of course, if you are married to using Linux, it doesn’t seem like a great product for you, yet (if ever). Sorry.
BTW – there is a list of available area codes on the magicJack website, in the FAQ section.
The magic jack commercials are hilarious, they say get rid of your phone company, but you still need internet and I don’t know about you but my phone, internet and tv are all from one company, it’s also cheaper to get a package deal so if I cut out my phone line it would actually cost me more!
you dont have to cut your telephone from your provider,magicjack is seperate from your telephone mobile or landline…its is a USB form of v.o.i.p or voice over internet protocol that will be plug to your computer with internet then after 5 mins of easy installation you have new unlimited telephone via internet to call any number in U.S and canada unlimitted…..note that the quality of the reception is depends in the quality of your internet becouse it use the internet as a signal the lower your net the poor your magicjack reception….the goode in magicjack it require low bankwith requirement than ym,skype, or other more v.o.i.p competerors and this is unlimitted
Magicjack a hit in the Philippines
In the last few months, Filipinos have grown to love it, but a lot of negative forums has discredited Magicjack in the past, since then campaigns to lunch the product with technical support with someone to talk with and not some chat on the web, we cater to our clients with the satisfaction for what they paid for. Although most Magicjack U.S. has to deal with the official website, we at Magicjack Philippines has lunch our technical support for our satisfied customers, bear in mind that our clients are mostly Filipinos and are paying extra for the service we render so bear in mind that purchases made through Global Network Solutions in the Philippines are more than happy to help you with your inquires and replacements. Non-registered USB users will not be entertained by the company.
In this times of economic crisis savings are import for the wise shopper. So make that wise purchase with Global Network Solutions. We are more than happy to serve!
Global network solutions almost 3 year handling this gadget in the philippines
offer:
1 year warranty
replacement
24/7 support
for all magicjack here in the philippines
global info
globalnet_solution@yahoo.com
email us so we can help you in your problem with magicjack
Just renewed my magicjack for it’s third year of service in the Philippines. Works great, however I do not leave it plugged in 24 hours a day. I use it when I need to call has voice mail, 3 way calling, allows you to select area code in US. Very satisfied with the initial cost $39.95 (first year service included) and renewal $20.00 per year.
This is a great way for me to call my girlfriend in the philippines :)
my aunt from texas has sent me a magic jack with phone through balikbayan box and will soon be here in a few weeks….is it really true that i can call anywhere in the US to any phones with/without magic jack? i need to know coz my boyfriend lives in delaware and he doesnt have a magic jack
Yes. It works the same way as Skype and a few other services. You can call anywhere in the US, land line or mobile.
Please wait for a site operator to respond.
You are now chatting with ‘Sam’
Your Issue ID for this chat is LTK4190120832107X
Sam: Hello, how may I help you?
Sam: May I know what is the main problem with your magicJack devkcplease/
REX : said here no outbound calling..
Sam: May I have your magicJack number please?
REX : sam****
REX : 714-********
REX : hey..
Sam: Thank you
Sam: May I have the Account Name and the registered Email Address please?
Sam: This phone number has violated our Terms of Service.Please refer to Section 6, Proper Use at http://www.magicJack.com/TOS
REX : what?
REX : this magicjack is unlimited right?any number in U.S and canada…
REX : as your website statement and advertisement….
REX : mean unli..any number….
REX : no limit…
Sam: One moment please…
REX : okay..
REX : read your website first..I mean visit your website statements…
Sam: I appreciate your patience.
Sam: http://www.magicjack.com/tos/
REX : okay..
Sam: Please click on the link above and refer to Section 6.
REX : then try to browse and read your advertisement in your website look there you can see it is unlimited any number in U.S and canada….
Sam: You agree that you are responsible for your own communications and for any consequences that arise from them. You agree that you will use the magicJack device in compliance with all applicable local, state, national, and international laws, rules and regulations. Among other things you will not agree to, and will not authorize or encourage any third party to: (a) prevent others from using their magicJack devices, (b) use the magicJack device for any fraudulent or inappropriate purpose, or (c) remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices contained in or on the magicJack device, including those of any of our business associates, from whom we may have licensed certain components used in the magicJack device. Violation of any of these obligations may result in immediate termination of this Agreement, and may subject you to state and federal penalties and other legal consequences. magicJack reserves the right, but will have no obligation, to investigate your use of the magicJack device in order (a) to determine whether a violation of the Agreement has occurred or (b) to comply with any applicable law, regulation, legal process or governmental request. magicJack reserves the right to block calls to numbers that abuse its services such as, but not limited to, traffic stimulation numbers. If magicJack sees excessive use, including but not limited to, a customer whose usage is twenty (20) times more than the average magicJack’s customer’s usage, or a customer who calls more than 50 different telephone numbers per day, or systematic or intentional misuse, it reserves the right, in our sole discretion, to terminate your use of the magicJack device and/or Software immediately, and you will not be entitled to get a refund of any licensing fee or any other fee you may have paid to us. We reserve the right to reclaim any telephone number that does not make a call for a consecutive 90 days. In the event we reclaim a phone number and your software license is still active, you may choose another phone number.
Sam: Please refer to section 6 for proper use Rex,]
Sam: Please refer to our TOS Rex.
REX : refer to your website advertisement…
Sam: I do apologize Rex but there is nothing you can do to reverse the action.
REX : I will post this conversation in Yahoo news and google..
REX : adsense…
REX : adwords..
REX : and any means to spread this kind of catch regarding to your service..
REX : try me..
Sam: Thank you Rex.
Unlimited these days is determined by the people who say “unlimited”, not what it means in the dictionary. I smell a class action lawsuit brewing.
i’m not prone to reading ToS agreements but this part here concerns me:
(b) to comply with any applicable law, regulation, legal process or governmental request. magicJack reserves the right to block calls to numbers that abuse its services such as, but not limited to, traffic stimulation numbers. If magicJack sees excessive use, including but not limited to, a customer whose usage is twenty (20) times more than the average magicJack’s customer’s usage, or a customer who calls more than 50 different telephone numbers per day, or systematic or intentional misuse, it reserves the right, in our sole discretion, to terminate your use of the magicJack device and/or Software immediately, and you will not be entitled to get a refund of any licensing fee or any other fee you may have paid to us. We reserve the right to reclaim any telephone number that does not make a call for a consecutive 90 days.
==================================
REX didn’t mention which particular part of section 6 was being violated. Unless you’re using it as a business, that’s different with “for business purposes”. it’s almost the same thing with internet providers in the US or maybe also in other countries. You may not notice or know about it but some ISPs abroad limit their user’s monthly download to 50GB. Besides, even if you download(legally) or just stream movies online all day for 1 month you won’t be eating up that much bandwidth. of course they don’t tell you that on the fine print, it’s the same thing everywhere you go nowadays. live with it or leave it, or tell others about it i may say
i cant use my magicjack coz i cant sign in…sign out is the error i get whenever i plug it
I know some people have issues with their magic jack. But I never did. In general – I would say use it only if you need a home phone number. If not, skype is great.
I have both Magic Jack and Skype and I find Skype to be better & more user friendly.
I prefer magicJack especially if you like to talk a lot. Knowing the speed of the internet in the philippines, magicjack is better and cheaper. Plus they can call US anytime want to. The drawback for us here in the US if we want to call magicjack it might be off. so you might need a combination of magicjack and skype to call philippine land lines. hey if you have roamng then just text them to call you from their magicjack.
Magic jack is better if you have a landline in the Philippines. I dont know how it works if your only using a mobile. It sounds cheaper than using Skype. I been using Skype for how many years now. They rip me off with their long distance rates.
The big drawback for Majic Jack is that you have to have a computer. There is a new version that should be released this year that does not require a computer, can connect via wi-fi. I am looking forward to that. The big problem in the Philippines for me is the quality of internet (speed & connection) that determines the quality of the call.
Mike, You need a computer to run both Magic Jack and Skype. Actually with Magic Jack you can plug it into a phone dsl line and use it with the computer being off… So you don´t really need a computer to use MJ…
I prefer skype as well. I have not tried magicjack yet but I will take a look at it.
I gave my girlfriend a MagicJack. It was great. Once installed, she could call anywhere in the US and Canada for free. I could call her from my home, office or cell, using a local number.
The only drawback is the need for a PC and broadband connection. Also, the PC must be on for it to work. I have never seen a MagicJack that can be plugged into a DSL line. They work as a USB device, and must uses software on a computer to dial.
When I visited the Philippines, I brought 2 MagicJacks – one for my girlfriend, and one for her aunt, whose husband also lives here in Houston. They still use it, and find it invaluable. The ability to have a make unlimited calls, with no other charges is great.
hi, im using our magicjack to call my wife and kids to chicago… few months ago it expired and i couldn’t renew it from here using my credit card… is there any way i can renew it directly??? do you have an office here in the phillippines??? thank you & more power…
I just wrote about it. I have nothing to do with the actual sales or service.
hi, i’m using majicjack for a year and it expired few months ago… im trying to renew it through the internet but i couldn’t… it’s been a big help for me and for my family in the states using magicjack… do you have an office here in the phillippines??? please give me a reply upon this matter as soon as possible… thank you and more power to majicjack…
click on this link to renew your magic jack service. i’ve been renewing it every year and this is my 3rd year. i sent my magic jack to my family in the philippines. they can call me anytime and anywhere i am- at home, at work or when i am grocery shopping etc. hope this helps. have your credit card ready.
https://web05.magicjack.com/my.magicjack/cookietest.html?redirected=true&gotopage=index.html
what the best way to keep track of calls on magic jack? How do you keep track of the number of calls and the number of minutes? Can you do than on magic jack plus? We want to keep track of the calls made and the number of minutes using magic jack plus. What is the best way to do that?
I would recommend MAGIC JACK especially to the residents of Philippines who has relatives in the United States and in Canada.My family uses this device for 2 years now and it was a great help in communicating in the US.The voice quaity is also excellent comparable to making local calls.
The difference is cost. MagicJack is cheaper by far; costing only 20 dollars a year. If you pay for five years in advance, then it’s 12 dollars a year. The (MagicJack is guaranteed for that period of time BTW). MagicJack has all sorts of area codes, making your local number a true local number. The new PLUS version is even more handy, not requiring a pc at all. Just a powered USB plug and a WiFi connection.
hi, just want to ask if i can use the magicjack anywhere in the world? even if both of us were not in US?
It depends on the voice-over-IP restrictions of a particular country. In the Philippines, for example, it’s best to have the MagicJack device there instead of the US due to long distance tariffs for calls from the US.
Oops, I read your question wrong. One of the parties has to be in the US, but not both.
Yes. You can use magic jack anywhere in the world with internet connection. The limitation is you’ll only get a US or Canadian phone number. If you’re in Spain and the other one is in Asia, you can use it.
It`s pretty simple to get the US free rates when talking to someone in a foreign country.Simply register a Magic Jack for the other party in the US and send it to them in a package.Viola…..you are in business
HI nice to know that you are here in the Philippines…i am agreed of what you posts…i am assure that you really do searching upon posting this blog am i right???
what can i say is to thanking of you…for being shared in your ideas…
I never know about this Magic Jack, I most prefer to Skype for calling in any purposes..but this one is great too. Great stuff I will probably check this out.
MagicJack definitely looks a lot more expensive than Skype, short- and long-term. Who knows, maybe it’s more reliable.
I doubt it, though.
I thinks magicJack is more convenient to use.. As you were saying there is nothing beats the quality of standard international long distance charges.. :)
If you have an iPhone, use the app talkatone to get free calls. No subscription, free app. All you need is a google email to login and internet service. I have good wifi at home (web developer) in the Philippines, so it works well for me. I call the States all the time. There is an advertising bar on the phone, but I don’t notice it anyway, because I’m talking with the phone next to my head or on a headset with the phone in my pocket.
we brought a magicjack with us to the philippines. seems to work great. it must be activated in the us though to call to/from. that way we have a us number. we only use it for calls to the us. we also use skype. if we want video it is skype. free if both of us have skype account. can hardly wait to try a group or conference call.
wonderful technology out there. email, voips. amazing. time zone differences a pain. one son called us at 4:00 am. he now has a world time app on his phone. another son’s computer for some reason notified us he was online with skype. when we called discovered we woke him up. havent’ figured that one out.
we will be here for two years. we will see what lasts.
We also use both MJ and Skype and both are way better than what was offered when we first moved here 10+ years ago. BTW my MJ unit has held up fine. It was activated in the US, we selected a random US#. After the first year you do get offered discounts for multi year renewals which brought my cost down to US$14.66/year. I have used it all over Asia and as long as you have a good internet connection it works fine. I like that it has an answering machine service which is free and sent to my e-ad. It now also has the option to just plug into the wall socket.
I also use Skype for my calls which are not to the US or for example another Skype user. I think any preference would depend on the user.