When Shopping for VoIP Service Providers Like Magic Jack How Can I Get an Honest Review?

When you are researching something like the Magic Jack and you run across comments and reviews in the way of blogs and forums, does it mean that it is a piece of junk? The answer is no, like it has been said before it is a whole lot more likely that a unhappy customer will seek out any and every place where he/she can voice their disappointment, especially if they think they have be scammed.

Even though Magic Jack (the best deal amongst VoIP service providers) does carry a percentage of unhappy customers, it’s just a small percentage of the total customer base. There are plenty of people who are happy to ecstatically happy with this VoIP internet phone service.

Here’s How I Researched The Magic Jack to try and Come Up With a Reasonable Percentage in how many people who are – Very Happy to just happy – can take it or leave it – very un-happy. First of all I looked into the history of the Magic Jack as a VoIP service provider.

Basic History:

Magic Jack became a VoIP service provider in the late part of 2007 selling the VoIP unit through their late night infomercials by taking phone orders and though there website. Between this time and towards the end of 2009 they had earned an F rating from the Florida BBB because of the complaints about the business practice of taking money for customer’s bank accounts before the 30 day trial was up. This rating changed to an A- where it stands today after it was established by the Florida BBB that Magic Jack had satisfied in correcting and making good on the customer complaints.

This was the first equation I looked at – Magic Jack after almost two years as a VoIP service provider, which there had been millions of Magic Jack units sold there was only a little over 2700 complaints to the Florida BBB. Most of these complaints were about the cost being taken from bank accounts before the thirty day free trial was up and not about how it worked. 2700 complaints out of millions in not something any company wants but it is a good indication that there are more than plenty of happy customers also.

The next thing I looked at was more history – like stated before Magic Jack became one of many VoIP service providers in late 2007 and they are not slowing down in growth. They continue to sell more and more of the Magic Jack VoIP units by the thousands every day. It is now at the time of this post August 2, 2011 more than three and a half years and has a customer base in the millions. No business could stay in business with such a cost effective product like the Magic Jack unless it was on the up and up and offer a product which gives great value to the customer.

The next thing is I wanted some real estimates on customer satisfaction – blogs and forums is not a great place to get a realistic customer satisfaction count, so what I did was I went to the five top retailers that offer the Magic Jack phone which was Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Walgreens, Sears, Kmart and of course Amazon. Here i got a real feel of how real customers really feel about this product. This is a much better gauge because you get responses from the happy to un-happy and in the middle customer through the customer reviews.

I took all combined customer ratings of 5 and 4 and added them together to get a happy count.
I took all combined customer ratings of 3 and added them together to get a take or leave it count.
I took all combined customer ratings of 2 and 1 and added them together to get the unhappy count.

Then I took these counts and divided them by the total reviews combined of all retailers.
Note: I have two sets of results here – one is all retailers together and one is without Amazon because for some reason Amazon un-happy count is much higher than with the regular retailers. I know that the regular retailers get their Magic Jacks direct from the magic jack manufacture and I am not sure where Amazon gets their units.

This is what I got: Three Classes

With Amazon:                                       Without Amazon:
Happy –                   57.59%                  Happy -                      70.35%
Take or Leave it –    6.40%                    Take it or Leave it -       6.06%
Not Happy -             36.93%                  Not Happy-                   25.76

There you have it some real numbers to go by. I know that these numbers don’t seem that great but if you get your Magic Jack directly from the Magic Jack website or a major retailer like Wal-Mart or Sears you have a pretty good chance of not having a problem.

All the major retailers were all very close in their review results and there was an obvious drop off with customer satisfaction with Amazon customers so all though you may save a couple of bucks at Amazon I don’t think it worth it.

The people who took a chance (part of the 70%) and spent $40.00 to try this VoIP service Provider Magic Jack are now saving hundreds by not having a monthly phone bill anymore.

For the people who can’t make this very cost effective VoIP device The Magic Jack work for them all I can say is if you get in a position where you can try again you may have better luck next time. This technology is getting better so don’t give up. If you situation changes different computer or different internet connection you may want to give it another try, just remember that you can send it back and get a full refund but you got to send it back before the thirty days is over. Also remember that the free trial does not start when you receive the unit but when you buy it, so do not delay.

Also I wanted to say that there are many reasons that these customers were not happy it wasn’t just trouble making it work, there were still some that still were surprised by the price of the Magic Jack being taken from their bank account – most banks put holds on these types of transactions its not gone it is just waiting to either go on to the MJ account after the thirty days or back into your account if a return is asked for.

Other complaints are with customers dealing with the Magic Jack customer’s service. There customer service is setup as a chat service and are not equipped to deal with the type of technical issues that plague a lot of the unhappy customers. These types of issues are computer or internet related and not the Magic Jack. Because Magic Jack uses the computer there is a whole host of things that may complicate things such as viruses and spyware. Software conflicts are another one that can cause difficult to solve problems.

Some people don’t realize ether that something running in the computers background can affect call quality – updates or a virus scan running can in some machines use enough CPU to cause drag and poor call quality.
If you have a well protected clean computer with high speed internet connection than you have a great chance of being able to be one of many paying only 20 bucks a year for a VoIP service provider Magic Jack.

Magic Jack VoIP Internet Phone



Call anywhere within the US and Canada
with Magic Jack



Magic Jack is a Low Cost VoIP Device That Uses the Internet to Make Long Distance Phone Calls

With Magic Jack the owner can make unlimited local and long distance calls anywhere within the US and Canada. Magic Jack VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) which connects to your computer via an open USB port not your modem cost $39.95 for the device and the first year of service and $19.95 a year after. Any person can call you devoid of any added charges or special numbers and its merely $19.95 a year for quality phone service. That's insane! You get a free phone number, caller ID, voice mail, and call waiting. Ya, I know $19.95 a year - WOW!

Not all area codes and prefix’s are available as of yet with Magic Jack. This means that you would need to take an alternate prefix or area code. If you do take an alternate code then local incoming calls would be charged for a long distance call. One way around this, until an area code or prefix in your area is obtainable is, by using your caller ID, do not answer the call and merely call them straight back with no cost to them. I know this is a slight bit of a hassle but for $19.95 a year.

Setting up your Magic Jack account is fast and easy

To get connected only takes five minutes or so when you fallow easy step by step instructions that appear on your screen after plugging in the Magic Jack. Plug your phone into the Magic Jack, pick up the receiver and you will hear a familiar dial tone. Most calls are problem free and have sound quality of the landline you just replaced. Most calls, not all.

You can take it with you on trips and hook up through your note book everywhere you can obtain a wireless Internet connection, that is just about anywhere nowadays. That alone can save tons of money on cell phone calls if you travel a lot. Magic Jack offers portability that other VoIP providers don't.

5 primary Questions and Answers About the Magic Jack Internet Phone

Magic Jack Internet Phone is the most cost effective VoIP service today:

Being a member of the VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) club, Magic Jack Internet Phone is a major contender in a extremely competitive market. Using a high-speed internet connection and an open USB port on your computer the device allows unlimited local and long distance calling within the United States and Canada. Plugging the gadget known as a dongle into your computer: a preloaded program starts the setup procedure. All it takes is a couple of minutes, plug in a regular phone into the device and make free long distance calls.

This mechanism differs from most VoIP systems as it plugs into directly into your computer not your modem. Plugging straight into your computer allows you to take it with you and plug it into any computer with high speed internet and make free calls. The software is in the mechanism and uses the computer to connect to your account so not only can you make calls from anywhere you also receive your calls wherever you are.

1. What are System requirements?

Operating Systems.
Windows XP to Windows 7 and Intel Based Apple Mac. Windows 7 users can find updates at the Magic Jack Internet Phone website.
Compatible Broadband high-speed internet connections
Internet connections that work with the Magic Jack - Broadband, High-Speed Internet, Cable Internet, WiFi, Wireless, DSL, WiMax and FiOS.
What internet connections are not compatible with MagicJack?
Satellite internet connections like, direct TV or Hughes net and does not work at all with dial-up.

2.Can emergency calls be made through 911 with MagicJack?

You must fill out the section during setup where you put in your address so that magicjack can route your call to your local emergency service.

3. Are all the area codes available?

If having your local area code is important to you then you might want to check the available area codes for your area. As the company expands more area codes and prefixes will be available.

4. How portable is this small internet phone device?

If you take your Magic Jack Internet phone with you when you journey out of country you can call back to the U.S. or Canada for free.
If both parties are using a MagicJack Internet phone then totally free calls can be made to any country from any country. You can purchase minutes to make calls to other countries to non-MagicJack uses. The per-minute charge is very competitive to other VoIP services.

5. My account was charged right away, I thought I had a thirty day free trial.

Quite a few people who purchased this device were upset and surprised when the money came out of their accounts right after the transaction was completed. What people don't recognize is the money in not gone just on hold and it will either go on to the MagicJack account when the thirty days is up or back to your account if you request a refund before the thirty days is up. The money is not gone it is simply no longer available until the thirty-day trial period is up when it is either transferred to the Magic Jack accounts or back to your account.

They don't make this clear and they should.

MagicJack Internet Phone a bright Star in a Poor Economy

Since arriving in late 2007 the MagicJack Internet Phone has saved its customers loads of money on their long distance phone bill. Each year there are millions of brand new customers a year and most are very happy with this service. There is a small percent of customers however that have been dissatisfied with the device for a variety of reasons. This is accurate with all VoIP phone services, there are always a few that just can't make it work, but for the rest, they love it. Average savings of around 90 percent is what new Magic Jack customers that moved over from their old landline services are experiencing.

With this ruff economy many people need help making ends meet and The MagicJack Internet Phone has helped scores of people retain phone service when they just couldn't afford a regular phone service. For someone who has just had their work hours decreased, lost a job or just live on a limited fixed income, an internet phone service like this means a whole lot. Phone calls in the US and Canada are virtually free after an initial cost of $39.95 for the VoIP unit and first year of phone service. You pay only $19.95 a year after that. Other costs are the internet service provider of course. A high speed internet connection is what you need for the MagicJack Internet Phone to work. You cannot use it with a dialup connection. The MagicJack Internet Phone saved me hundreds of dollars off my yearly phone bill.

In this economy person with a computer and a dialup phone service, can drop the dialup phone service, pickup a standalone (DSL only - through a service like AT&T) high-speed broadband internet service, pickup a Magic Jack internet phone, have a phone service with all the features and a much better internet and still save over 50 % of what you were paying for a standard phone service and dialup. A lot of times stand alone DSL services will offer sign up deals that can save on startup costs.

Call quality for the most part is exceptional. The quality of calls will vary but is still very decent. At these times it is equal to a cell phone. The MagicJack Internet Phone is one of today most innovative inventions of the 21st century and the savings that its customers have enjoyed is in the billions of dollars since its start. Yes MagicJack Internet Phone has been a huge bright spot for a lot of people that have been affected by a bad economy.