Vonage or Magic Jack

[Tricia McLaughlin]

Has anyone ever used either? If so, what are the pros and cons? I just looked at the Vonage site and it's very tempting.

TIA,
Tricia

[Jennie Ann]

I don't know much about either, as I have not tried them, but I do know that the Magic Jack, last time I checked, cannot dial 911 for emergency. I'm not sure if this has changed.

[Julie Samford]

Hi Tricia -
I have both. Magic Jack is super cheap and works great!

The only thing I didn't know when I switched from a regular land line is that the VOIP lines aren't reliable for sending faxes. I use efax to send faxes, but if there are times when you need to sign something or fax a real piece of paper, you'll have to scan it and email it. Although I think I did read somewhere on this board once that somebody used their VOIP for faxes, so maybe they figured out something I couldn't.

My husband uses Vonage for his business so that his international customers can make a local call that rings to his regular phone number. Other than that and the $50-80 charge a month, the service is just like Magic Jack. I think Magic Jack was $40, and then the local and long distance were absolutely free for the first year and then like $20 for the following years. It uses your regular phones, so you don't have to have a microphone and earpiece or anything. Best deal ever!

Julie

[Tricia McLaughlin]

Jennie,, thanks for the reply. I did see on Vonage's page that you can call 911.

Julie,
I have e-fax too, but also have a fax machine. Seems redundant, but I like to be able to get faxes wherever I am.
I'm leaning toward Vonage as I do make a lot of calls to the UK, and they are free with the basic service. From what I read, if you are on a phone call, you can transfer it to your cell if you are going out without cutting the other person off. That seemed pretty cool.
I'm just sick of paying the local phone company an outlandish amount every month to have this package, that package. For instance, it costs me $5.95 a month to get a cheap rate to the UK. The cheap rate is $.05 a minute. Go figure.

Thank you both for your input.
Tricia

[Cindy L.A.]

I tried Vonage for about a month or two about a year or two ago and abandoned it!
Cindy L.A.

[Karen Goldenberg]

Trisha,

Great question. I'm hoping more people will respond. I've often wondered how good Magic Jack is. I'll check in for new responses.

Bubbie Karen

[Tricia McLaughlin]

Karen,

How are you? I am wondering how good either one is too. I don't want to cut the landline off without something in place that is going to work.

I'm working in Worcester tomorrow, Friday. To bad we couldn't hook up. Mom is in the hospital again, but expected discharge is next week.

Hope you are well,
Tricia

[Tricia McLaughlin]

Cindy,

Why did you abandon it? Was it that bad?

Thanks, Tricia

[Cindy L.A.]

Apparently, it sounded garbled to the listener. They kept saying that it sounded like I was under water or in a tunnel. As soon as I would connect, I'd ask them if they can hear me and it just was never a good answer. I even bought a better headset... I really wanted it to be a good option, but it wasn't. That was a long time ago. Maybe it's better now. You can try it out and cancel it since it's cheap enough!
Cindy L.A.

[Janet]

Tricia,

The Magic Jack works great. You can call 911, and you can change where the call to 911 goes if you are traveling or at a different location. You can't beat the price. The quality is good. A lot better than a cell phone cutting out.

You can call anywhere in the US, no additional charges.

Can you tell I'm a fan?

Janet

[Tricia McLaughlin]

Thanks, Janet, for responding. I know we talked about this before. I'm wondering if it wouldn't make sense for me to go with Vonage and Magic Jack. I don't know.....can you tell I'm not good at decision making? LOL

One question: Can you take the Magic Jack with you to use on your laptop with wireless internet? Does it work that way? Baffled, Tricia

[Janet]

Yes, we use it with a wireless connection all the time. Tricia, the Magic Jack is $19.99 for one year. You don't need to pay the $24.99 a month for Vonage.

Spend your money on something else. :)

[Tricia McLaughlin]

Hmmmmmmm, Janet, now you've got me more confused. Can you make overseas calls with MJ? If so, is it free or a per-minute charge?

Thanks mucho,
Tricia

I'm trying to take the money from Verizon to spend on something else LOL, and NOT another phone company. :-)