magicJack and magicJack Plus Support, Reviews, FAQs and Tricks

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

I work from home, and have 2 phone lines with AT&T. Each line costs me $35 a month (before all the fees & taxes), which I find too expensive, especially for our home phone which we use little. I want to get MJ for my home line, and connect directly to my router, NOT THRU MY COMPUTER, which is an iMac, btw.

My questions:

A. I must keep my phone number. I heard and read some horror stories of people losing their number when moving from AT&T to Comcast. Is there such issue when porting my number to MJ?

B. I make international calls using a service that allows me to call their local number, wait for the prompt, and then dial the international number. Can MJ handle that?

C. As mentioned, I don't want MJ to be connected to my iMac, but I guess I will need to do the registration and porting going online to MJ's site, using my iMac, right? Is there a compatibility issue?

D. If, within say a couple weeks, I find that I don't like MJ, how difficult is it to cancel the service, and even more, any issues with porting my number back to AT&T?...

I'd appreciate any advice here!

Bill Smith · Posted: Thu May 22, 2014 6:41 pm Post subject:

I don't have a mac so I can't give you an intelligent answer on those questions.

A. Porting shouldn't be a problem but be aware that MJ charges $10 for the service. They also charge $10 per year thereafter for doing nothing.

B. You can call the access number for your international calls as long as that number is not in a so called high cost access area. You won't know until you try calling that number. You may find that MJ's international rates are as good as what you are using now (or close), so this may be a moot point.

C. Registration on line has, for me anyway, been painless.

D. If you decide to get MJ, try it for a while BEFORE you port your existing number. Make sure that all of your requirements are met first and then port your number.

Purchase the MJ at Walmart so that if in say, 20 days, it does not work for you, you can get your money back. Don't buy it online.

If your internet service is though AT&T, you may have to keep a phone number through them to get DSL service. Check before you make any changes. This may not be a problem if you keep your business number with them.

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Thanks, Bill.

The access number for my international calls is a local number. I was just wondering, based on reading something (maybe I misunderstood), as if there may be issues with dialing the int. number once the local call is made. In other words, I call the local number, I get a recording telling me my account credit amount, then I dial the international number.

I am with Comcast for my Internet, AT&T is only for my phones.

But more important, how is this gonna work for testing � if I don't port my number first?.... If I connect my home phone thru MJ to the modem, I practically disconnect it from the AT&T wire, so how will this phone be connected to the world?

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Also, so that I can make a realistic comparison, how much am I expected be paying in one year, altogether with everything?

Bill Smith · Posted: Sat May 24, 2014 12:50 pm Post subject:

To test the MJ, simply plug in any standard phone you have and don't change anything in your current set-up. Once registered, simply plug the MJ and the supplied power adapter into the outlet, connect the MJ to your router with the supplied cable, and plug in your phone. For your international calls, make sure that your new MJ number is recognized by that service. You may have to go to the website for that service to make this change or enter a PIN when you call the local number. The MJ costs $50 which includes the device and 6 months of service. Additional years are $30.

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Yes, meanwhile I did all that.... All is good EXCEPT when I call out my voice sound terrible to teh other party....

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Had a long chat session with MJ tech support, and we changed a couple things on my router, seems to fix it... I will test it a fw more times before deciding to keep MJ and port my number from AT&T....

Los Angeles jack · MagicJack Expert Joined: 06 Aug 2012 Posts: 79

Porting my number from AT & T went smoothly for me. Below is the email I received from MJ when I did it. The email was dated 1/16/12.

Dear xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx:

We have received your request to transfer your telephone number (xxx) xxx-xxxx to your magicJack.

Some important things to remember:
�Do not contact your current phone company to disconnect your telephone service.
�Your telephone number must be active with your old phone company for us to transfer your number to your magicJack.
�Transferring a number may take up to 10 business days to complete.
�During the transfer period, your current phone line will continue to operate normally.
�You may use your magicJack with the temporary telephone number we assigned during registration.

Please watch for additional status notifications.

We hope you tell all of your friends and family about the savings you enjoy using your magicJack!

Sincerely,

magicJack Customer Care

Los Angeles jack · MagicJack Expert Joined: 06 Aug 2012 Posts: 79

This was the confirmation email I received on 1/17/12. I paid $19.99 for the porting. Every year thereafter I believe the charge is $9.99.

Dear xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx,
Important: Please reply to this email within one hour if you would like to modify the order below. You do not have to take any action if you do not want to make any changes.

Order No.: xxxxxxxxxxx
Reference ID: xxxxxxxxx

Order Summary

Qty

Product Code

Description

Price Each

Subtotal

Charge Date

1 TRANSFERINNUMBER1999 U.S. Phone Number - Transfer In Fee 19.99 19.99 01/17/2012
1 TRANSFERINNUMBER U.S. Phone Number - Transfer In 0.00 0.00 01/17/2012
1 MJPLUSSTDDIALPLAN magicJack PLUS Standard Dialing Plan 0.00 0.00 01/17/2012
1 REGULATORYFEES4.8 Regulatory and Compliance Expense 0.96 0.96 01/17/2012

--------------------------
ORDER TOTAL: 20.95

Your credit card will be charged on or after the following date(s) for the amounts listed below.

01/17/2012 20.95

Important: Please save this email for 30 days as it contains your Order Number

Some useful information:

You may check on the status of your order at any time by clicking here Order Status and entering your email address and order number. For your convenience, these have been included in this link.

For questions regarding technical information click here Technical Help and a representative will assist you. Please note that this link is specifically for technical issues (not for order/billing information - see above for order/billing inquiries).

** Attention: Debit Card users

Due to the nature of the Free Trial Offer, this Free Trial is only available for Credit Card users. Please note: If you falsely identify your 'Debit card' as a 'Credit card' your card will be charged today and your order might not be processed. Please click here if you would like to change your method of payment or if you can not currently use your debit card for these payments. You may also respond to this email and reduce the amount of items you ordered.

Congratulations and enjoy your savings.

Yours truly,

magicJack Customer Service

Los Angeles jack · MagicJack Expert Joined: 06 Aug 2012 Posts: 79

Order Number: xxxxxxxxxxx

Visa: **** **** **** 5790

Item Description

Qty

Price Each

Total Price

Charge Date

Ported U.S. Phone Number Annual Fee: (xxx) xxx-xxxx 1 $9.95 $9.95 01/14/2013

You will be charged: *$10.43 01/14/2013

*Includes 4.8% fee for Regulatory expense, surcharges or taxes

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Thanks, Jack.

How long did they take to actually port your number?

Once they ported your number, how did you know the job was done? Did you get an email?

Los Angeles jack · MagicJack Expert Joined: 06 Aug 2012 Posts: 79

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

So not 10 days but couple hours? Wow...

Also, from my testing the system, before deciding to keep it and port my number, it seems quite inconsistent in quality... Sometimes it's perfect, sometimes it's choppy, and sometimes there's lots of static (my outgoing sound).... We live in a condo building that's connected to Comcast, and I notice that the D/L speed and Ping varies quite dramatically, anywhere between 15 down to 5, and the Ping can jump to 35 (I measure it using the Speedtest app on my iPad).... SO I guess that affects the quality of the sound.... Is there something that I can do about it?

Bill Smith · Posted: Mon May 26, 2014 12:42 pm Post subject:

I've found that the best voice quality occurs when there is no other activity on my router when using the MJ. In other words, don't surf or download something when on the MJ phone.

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

...So this morning I made anther test, calling MJ from my cell phone, all went ok. Now, trying to make a phone call from MJ, nothing works, "system is busy" my phone says, can't receive or make calls.... Are those 3 lights (blue-red-green) telling something?

Los Angeles jack · MagicJack Expert Joined: 06 Aug 2012 Posts: 79

On mine the blue light is steady solid and right next to it has a blinking white colored light. The green internet light blinks every so often. The orange phone light blinks. I'm not sure what the lights mean but I've never had any of the problems you are encountering. I would recommend checking your voice mail and clearing out your voice mail deleting any saved messages. I remember having a busy dial tone once (indicating that I had messages) and after I cleared out the old messages my phone worked fine after that. Hopefully it will be something simple such as this was my case.

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Sorry, false alarm.... While my regular phone is still connected to the AT&T line, I brought an older phone I still have to connect to MJ, and apparently something is wrong with it, and now it won't let me dial out or receive calls (but it still rings when an incoming call....)....

Los Angeles jack · MagicJack Expert Joined: 06 Aug 2012 Posts: 79

There is always a learning curve with a new device and sometimes that which we think is malfunctioning with the device is actually functioning properly. With that said, don't rely heavily on MJ customer support. You probably know more than them. And the customer support will most surely make things worse even though they might have good intentions. If the customer support offers to remotely access your computer to fix something, immediately disconnect.

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

They suggested I change my router's setting, which I did:

Click LAN Setup
Click WAN
Disable SPI firewall and Disable SIP ALG

Quality is OK now, except that I have an issue with my internet speed that fluctuates way too much... We live in a condo building that has Comcast cable service. During the day my speed is over 20, sometimes 28 Mbps, but in the evening, apparently when more neighbors are using it, speed may go down to 4-5, and of course, the quality of the phone connection deteriorates accordingly....

I already have the Comcast technician stop by on Friday...

steve350 · MagicJack Newbie Joined: 19 Jul 2014 Posts: 3

Amik · magicJack Apprentice Joined: 22 May 2014 Posts: 14

Steve,

I'm a bit surprised to read your post. I'm also in the 847 area code (a northern suburb of Chicago), and I haven't experienced some of the more alarming troubles that you have... Actually, today, after some adjustments and some learning curve � I'm quite OK with this product.

1. Caller ID not working: It does here, but only showing the incoming NUMBER, not the name. This is how MJ is designed for, as of now, at least. I added all my regular contacts to my phone's "directory" so that it recognizes those incoming calls and displays their names also.

2. Dropped calls and noises: I learned that this problem is directly connected to the internet SPEED you have, which tends to drop SIGNIFICANTLY in the evenings (and weekends), when more people are online, and that's when the quality deteriorates also. I suggest you use your computer to test your download speed, If it's less than 5 Mbps, it will significantly affect the quality of your phone.....
I had a speed of 25 (Comcast), but when testing, found out it dropped down to 3-4 Mbps in the evenings. It took awhile to get Comcast to admit that this is the nature of the beast, and I forced them to change my speed to 50 (right now free for 6 month)... So now the speed drops down to about 10 in the evening, which is suffice for my phone...

3. "I have to purchase pre-paid minutes to dial a number in this 847 area code" -- that's a real mystery to me... I'm just wondering, when you dial within your (847) area code, do you dial 1-847-and the phone number, or do you skip those first 4 digits? If you skip them (there was a time, years ago, with a certain provider, when we could skip those 4 digits when dialing within the 847 area code, but not anymore), that might be the culprit...

4. Please be advised that switching back to your cable provider (and I assume it's Comcast) is risky... There's a good chance you will LOSE YOUR NUMBER during the process of porting... I've heard and read MANY horror stories, 2 of them directly from my close friends, even though they switched from AT&T to Comcast.

Please check the above ideas and let us know...

steve350 · MagicJack Newbie Joined: 19 Jul 2014 Posts: 3

Amik,
Thanks for the input. Let me expand on the Caller ID situation. When I am on a call and I hear a beep that someone is calling me (call waiting) it does not show the 10 digit number trying to call me. So I don't know who it is.
I have to 1+847 and then my companies number and I get an automated message that I have to puchase prepaid minutes. I will try and find what the chat person told me. It was something about not being recognized carrier or something like that.
My Internet is Fiber Optics and it's blazing fast all day long.
The other thing I forgot to mention is now for our local calls I have to dial my own area code (561) to make a call. We never had to do this with ATT or my cable company.

Gene45 · MagicJack Contributor Joined: 11 Jul 2012 Posts: 59

Log in to MJ and look at the international rates to compare to what you pay now. https://web04.magicjack.com/my/index.html?language=&variation=

steve350 · MagicJack Newbie Joined: 19 Jul 2014 Posts: 3

I don't call internationally. I just found out MJ wants $30 to port my number back. What a rip off company.

magicJack and magicJack Plus Support, Reviews, FAQs and Tricks

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