This story starts with a conversation with myself.
You can't write about this one, Big B.
"Why not?"
The project was too easy.
"But this could save people hundreds of dollars a year."
It won't be very funny. You didn't even go to Lowe's three times or drink any bourbon.
We had a dilemma. Our son was born, and we had just worked up the courage to hire a babysitter and head out for a date. The issue was that our land line was disconnected many years ago due to cheap cell phone plans that include free mobile to mobile and 1400 rollover minutes. What if something goes wrong and the babysitter's cell phone doesn't work? We needed a land line, but didn't need the pricetag.
Version 1.0 of this blog story started with the original MagicJack. Don't get one. They stink. The first MagicJack required your PC to be turned on all the time, and the app made your PC boot up so slow that you could brew a pot of coffee before the PC was usable. To fix this, I wrote a script to deactivate MagicJack from the startup and made sure that the PC was on before the babysitter got there. Your average Joe doesn't have these kind of skills, and the whole thing was kind of a drag. Version 2.0 of this product fixes all that. Mine came straight from www.magicjack.com when they were running a half price sale (about $40). RadioShack has them for $69.99.
MagicJack Plus doesn't need a computer to run, just to activate. First, plug the MagicJack Plus into a USB slot on your PC. Then run through a configuration routine on the PC to get everything ready. After running setup, the MagicJack plus plugs straight into a router via an ethernet cable. Plug another cable into power, run a phone line to a regular analog telephone, and you're all ready to go.
 |
| MagicJack Plus connections. Power on the right, ethernet and phone cord on the left. |
 |
| Ethernet cable plugs directly into router. No PC needed for daily use. |
MagicJack service runs about $25 per year for unlimited long distance and local calling in the US. I know people that pay the phone company $50 per month for the same service. MagicJack offers add on services (like a vanity number) for a fee if you want. They also sell international calling at more reasonable rates than cell phone providers. Quality of the service has been very good for the past 6 months, and the international service sounds like you're talking to someone right next door.
You'll also need an analog phone to actually talk on the thing. For about $40, I got a Uniden cordless model with 3 handsets. The base and spare phone are in the basement close to the router, and we also have one upstairs. The Uniden set has voicemail built into the base, but MagicJack service also includes voicemail that gets forwarded to your email address.
Any drawbacks? Figured you'd ask about that. First, MagicJack doesn't offer local phone numbers in every town. I had to pick a local number in a town about 25 miles away. No biggie, because long distance is pretty much free these days anyway. The service also isn't as reliable as a land line from the phone company.
 |
| We use a cordless phone to plug into the MagicJack Plus |
To summarize, you need these things to run a MagicJack plus:
- Broadband internet service
- Free port on your router
- Analog phone (mine was about $40)
- MagicJack Plus hardware (about $70)
- MagicJack service (about $25 per year)
A land line for $25 a year? Absolutely, and you don't need a lot of gear or IT knowledge.
Want to read an article about lowing your electricity bill, too? Click here.
