In this day and age, many of us have cell phones that we can use whenever we want, as long as there is coverage. But sometimes, we long for the convenience of a regular telephone, with big buttons, a normal “ring” and a nice sized handset.
There are a couple of ways this can be accomplished. Many RV parks offer a telephone line at your camp site, which can be plugged into your coach. Most RVs have at least one phone jack, usually by the cable TV jack. This might give you the ability to make local and toll-free calls with or without a fee. Check with your park.
Another alternative is a device called a magicJack. It requires a computer with an open USB port and a constant Internet connection. The technology is called Voice Over Internet Protocol, or VOIP. Purchasing a magicJack costs about $20 plus tax, and gets you the first year of service. Once purchased, installed, and registered, you will get your own phone number and will have the ability to make phone call to anywhere in the USA for no additional cost. A standard phone plugs into the magicJack and it functions the same as a land-line. You can also receive phone calls, since you do have an assigned phone number.
There are advantages to magicJack. First is the ability to take your phone number with you, wherever you go. The device itself is very compact – about 3 inches long by 1 inch wide and less than an inch thick. VOIP technology has come a very long way since it was first used in the early 21st century. The call quality is typically as good as that of a land line. The other advantage is the cost. However, it’s important to keep in mind that you get what you pay for.
Some disadvantages of magicJack include the program that installs to your computer. It is a proprietary program that sometimes conflicts with other programs and firewalls. For example, iTunes and magicJack don’t get along so well. MagicJack requires a constant Internet connection. If your RV park offers free WiFi, this might not be an issue, although it’s certainly not ideal to leave your computer running 24/7. If you do, it’s important to reboot the computer every day to restart everything.
If you use a wireless card to access the Internet, you’ll want to be aware of data usage, since most plans have limits on data use. You don’t want to exceed your monthly allotted data just by leaving your magicJack turned on. You’ll also want to be sure to ‘register’ the RV park where you use magicJack when you arrive in the rare event that you need to call 911.
Overall, magicJack is a viable alternative. It does not work well to send faxes, but works well enough at home or in the RV. While it may save you some money in long distance charges, it is still young technology and isn’t perfect. Good luck, and Happy Trails!
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Comments
I bought a Magic Jack cause it sounded to good to be true. but it turned out to be great. I've not canceled my land line, but I think you could if you wanted to be frugal. I make all my long distance calls on the MJ never taken it on the road. I'm going to give it a try..... every one who has a broad band connection should have a Magic Jack and I don't work for them.
We recently took our Magic Jack to the Caribbean island of St. Maarten and plugged it into our laptop to make free calls back home in the U.S. We could use it anywhere we had an internet connection (including a McDonalds). Cell phone calls were $2 per minute. Another advantage was the Magic Jack voicemail for when we were not online and a U.S. area code made calls from family non-international calls and therefore for the most part, FREE. We did pay $49 for the module and $20 for first year of service.
We have a magic Jack with an Arizona number so when we are in Arizona in the winter, we have a local number for our friends to call. For $20.00 a year you can't beat it.
I have had a Magic Jack for about a little over a year and they have improved tremendously!!! I have used it in Arizona, where I purchased it and have taken it to California and it works fantastic! When I first got it the quality of calls left a little to be desired, but within a few months the quality has improved big time....I would not be without my Magic Jack...you can't beat the price. It's a GREAT BARGAIN for what you pay!!
I bought the MJ last year but could not get it to work through my satellite ISP. If you go on the road you'll either have the park's wifi, your satellite dish, or your wifi card for a laptop. I called the company and was told that MJ only worked with a broadband service like AT&T, Roadrunner, Comcast, and such. They told me that it would not work with a satellite isp. Of course, I returned the product for a full refund. I really liked the concept, however I live out in the country and cannot get broadband service. Bummer!!!
We are from Canada and travel to Arizona each winter, we use it in British Columbia and in each park on the trip down, works great. We have had it for 1 1/5 years and works almost flawlessly now.
we have mj and have a air card and can not get it to work called and mj said we can only have hispeed internet to have it work this produck is no good do not waste your money on it we did and were sorry we did our air card is verizon
I found this on the magicJack web site:
magicJack requires one of the following Internet connections:
Broadband
High-Speed Internet
Cable Internet
DSL
WiFi
Wireless
WiMax
FiOS
A minimum bandwidth UPLOAD speed of 128 kb/s is required.
NOTE: magicJack does not work over dial-up or satellite Internet.
Anyone try Skype??
Skype does the same thing cept you don't need the little device! Just download and install Skype program for free and it works just as well with Windows OR with Linux (for folks like me). Make calls around the world and all you need is a webcam/headset with boom mic. Can call regular landlines/cell phones/forward calls etc for about $120/yr. Otherwise if call other skype users it is free no matter where in the world you are.
If you want the full headset feel that comes with a USB connector they can be found on the Net.
Plus with Skype and a webcam you can SEE the person that you are talking with provided they have a webcam as well.
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