Ready to discconnect the "Landline"?

[Theo1958]

I've had my MJ up and running for about two weeks without ANY major issues. For the time being, I have my Verizon landline forwarded to the MJ to give it maximum use during this 'trial period'.

Question: Are there any folks out there who have "cut the copper wires" and have completely disconnected from the traditional phone company and rely on the MJ?

I do have a cell phone for a backup, but do you think the technology has dependable enough to cut the cord?!?

For the record I have great audio, using a good, clean PC and Comcast Boost...with download speed often hitting 75-100Mbps and upload 3-4Mbps..nice.

[macman4hire]

magicJack works well enough for many members in this forum. I would purchase a prepaid cell phone as backup device in case your internet connection or the magicJack service goes down. Will you run your computer 24/7 so all the calls made to your magicJack will get through? If you do not want to run the computer 24/7 you may want to consider an ATA(Analog Telephone Adapter) to conserve on your power usage. I currently have my magicJack number forwarded to a free DID (Direct Inward Dialing Number) provided by IPComms. A new Linksys PAP2 ATA can be purchased for around $50.00 . magicJack is a great introductory device for a novice to start exploring the many options VoIP has to offer.

[tony]

Question: Are there any folks out there who have "cut the copper wires" and have completely disconnected from the traditional phone company and rely on the MJ?

Before you cut the landline cord, check out that 911 via MJ is working for you. Do a search in this forum for tips on how to contact your 911 centre before doing a test dial. I think the critical point in the decision is how reliable is your phone system in the event of an emergency. MJ relies on more factors than a landline (Internet up, computer on and running normally) and so the probability of a link in that chain failing when you need it most is higher. You mention you have a cell phone for backup and that may suffice. So aside from normal phone conversations, consider your options in an emergency. Also, if there are others in your household, will they know to grab the cell phone in an emergency if the regular desk phone isn't working? That all said, search the forum, there are people reporting having cut their landline and gone completely MJ.

I'm working on cutting my land line, probably in the next 4 months. I'm going to use an ATA with a subscription to a voip service for reliability.

[cell14]

Like many other people, I did cut my land line. However, my main phone device is my cell phone with a high minute plan, MJ is a "second" line( essentially my desk phone) plus a prepaid cell phone as a back up and fo r remote rural areas.
I would not recommend MJ as the main line, certainly not if you need a dependable connection for your business/job. But individual circumstances can be very different and what works for one guy does not work for the other.

[Theo1958]

I think that as I am now retired and telephoning has decreased significantly... I will keep Verizon, but reduce the it to the bare minimum...a basic line, no frills, etc. And use it as an emergency backup to the MJ.

My problem is that the Verizon quality of 'the call' is dreadful. I live near the ocean (a few feet) and apparently the aging copper lines are giving off a deafing static and ground loops on rainy days making 'traditional' phone service unusable. The phone company tells me its a problem they continually fight at the seashore.

In my case, the MJ audio and function Comcast Boost cable) operates flawlessly on a rainy day.

[mememe1234]

Before switch to MJ, I used Viatalk for two years and was pretty happy, but its renewal issue drove me to MJ. Had not used landline ever since using VOIP service. I do have a prepaid cell phone as a backup. Now, I have been using ata to host MJ service for more than a year. No big issue at all. Call quality is good enough (close to land line to me) for such a low priced service. With a land line, your monthly payment is greater than your yearly expense for MJ. My standalone DSL at 1.5mbp with $36.99/m is good enough as well. The Qos of router running Tomato mod from TeddyBear works flawlessly that enabled me to watching online streaming while using MJ with no problem. Very Happy so far, just hope MJ lasts long enough (renewed to 5 year for 69.99 recently).

[sabresfan]

I think that as I am now retired and telephoning has decreased significantly... I will keep Verizon, but reduce the it to the bare minimum...a basic line, no frills, etc. And use it as an emergency backup to the MJ.

My problem is that the Verizon quality of 'the call' is dreadful. I live near the ocean (a few feet) and apparently the aging copper lines are giving off a deafing static and ground loops on rainy days making 'traditional' phone service unusable. The phone company tells me its a problem they continually fight at the seashore.

In my case, the MJ audio and function Comcast Boost cable) operates flawlessly on a rainy day.

If Verizon has that kind of problem in your area I would dump them. If comcast offers phone service I would check them out if your not sure you want to trust MJ in an emergency. I know the basic pots plan with no additional features ran me almost $50 a month when I dumped them 16 month's ago. Another company with a good record is future nine. For about $13 a month you get 2000 minutes a month and they will configure an ata for you as well. If you do use voip as your primary home phone it is recommended to have an alternate means to dial 911 in an emergency so a prepaid cell or even an old cell phone you don't use anymore will also work.

[conniemadagain]

I use MJ W/ALPMAN COMPUTER and my cell phone ...

nothing else ...

[slceso]

I also ditched my home phone (mediacomm voip/ATA) and have an alpman TC with MJ. a few weeks ago, I lost the ability to call home from work (busy signal alwaya), and I now have an xling BTTN using MJ and 2 cells. the MJ is the only one giving me a fit with the xlink (hangs up incoming MJ calls after 3 seconds).

in my opinion, the MJ alone is not reliable enough due to their random server/exchange issues. you just never know when it's going to go down inexplicably and maybe not come back. a backup cell is a must, and if you get one with BT, you can use the xlink box. I may end up using only my cells with this thing.

good luck with yours,
r/

EDIT: updated the Xlink BTTN using their tool at myxlink.com, and all worky worky now.

[tony]

...a few weeks ago, I lost the ability to call home from work (busy signal alwaya)... in my opinion, the MJ alone is not reliable enough due to their random server/exchange issues. you just never know when it's going to go down inexplicably and maybe not come back. r/

Good point, not only is it important to have a reliable phone for outgoing calls, but to have a reliable service for incoming calls especially those important or urgent calls.

[xmr84]

Yesterday is a good example of why you really cannot depend on MJ as your prime phone line. It was down (could not make or receive calls) for several hours due technical problems outside of my control (MJ server?). It's up and running now, but I just cannot depend on it 100%.

Ok, that said, I am still happy with my MJ, and I think it is worth the money spent, but I would not recommend using it as your only phone line.

[Baja Boojum]

We're like alot of these replies:

We got a magicJack over a year ago, kept our landline for about two months while we tested the magicJack, then got rid of the landline.

We also have one cell phone between the two of us, and since I'm retired I'm either home or with my wife and her cell phone. The computer (and magicJack) are off at night when we're sleeping and when we're not home for long periods of time.

For us, this combination works great. The magicJack has been almost completely reliable, about 95% of the time using Windows 7 with no special hacks or tweeks. Occasionally we'll call someone back because of the echo, and rarely we have to use the cell phone to call because nothing happens using the magicJack.

[wease]

As a Canadian Snowbird to Florida for the winter,i get comcast internet for $19.95 a month for the six months i'm there.Got an alpman thin client connected to my MJ and it works great.I do have a cell as a backup(boost) but have no needed it very often.
When i return to Canada for the summer i connect my MJ to home computer and use it for long distance.I then forward the MJ Florida # to my Canada home phone so all my friends in Florida can call my local MJ # and get me in Canada with no long distance charges.
I love it.

[trek101]

I've been MJ for almost 2 years now. I am pretty much cell-phone based anyway. The only reason why I still have a landline is to keep my facsimile machine happy. With the help of many users’ suggestions in this forum on how to have it work reliably, I bagged the landline 1 year ago today and haven't looked back. Considering that I was paying Ma Bell $13.95 for basic services plus taxes totaling to a whopping $20.14 a month for the past 3 years. I averaged about 2 calls per month which breaks down to about $10.07 per call. I was wondering who is getting the "bang" for their buck and it sure wasn’t me.

P.S. I also, got my parents on board last Christmas and opted for their 5 year plan. They too are cell-phone based and wanting to have a landline convenience without worrying about eating up their minutes during the day.

[finder216]

I canceled my home phone service today. I had a package plan with my Internet/Digital TV service, so canceling will save me about $12 a month. I've been "testing" MagicJack for the last several months, with no major issues. After canceling the other service today, I hooked MagicJack up to my house phone wiring and it's working perfectly with all of my other phones, including both hard-wired and 3-wireless (all different brands).

I must be living right.

[m9878]

Do most put their computer and cordless on UPS?

[bitstopjoe]

I do.. APC SmartUPS 1000..




Joe Sica

[Nobody beats the Whiz!]

I have the following plugged in on my Cyberpower 1500 UPS:

-wireless router
-Cordless base station (two line)
-TK6000
-Ooma


The UPS gives me about 6 hours of power in this configuration with moderate to heavy router use (I don't know if the router power drain is affected much by traffic).

In the event of a power outage I'd either forward my MJ number to the TK (or Ooma), or plug the MJ into one of the laptops running on battery power. Normally, my MJ is plugged into the desktop, which is not UPS protected.

[trek101]

Thin client on XPe, cable modem, and router on a 12 volt 100 Ah battery. Under the 95/5/5 operation; backup time about 8 hours. With the power rifts from the switching station down the street it doesn't skip a beat since there is 0 transfer time. Having it modded to accept 12 volt power source requires a bit of patience and homework. A good large UPS that you can afford will give you sufficient backup time to keep things running. APC 1000 is definitely a good start...