Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

Baja Boojum · Post by **Baja Boojum** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 10:01 am

FYI: magicJack charges their standard port fee to use your current magicJack phone number on a new Plus.

I ordered a new magicJack Plus and when I asked if I could use my current number on the new device, they said yes. They didn't mention the standard port fee ($19.95 and $9.95 per year) applies. Naive me- I didn't think they would charge me to port their own number!

I cancelled my Plus and ordered a netTalk Duo.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 10:40 am

Baja Boojum wrote:FYI: magicJack charges their standard port fee to use your current phone number on a new Plus.

I ordered a new magicJack Plus and when I asked if I could use my current number on the new device, they said yes. They didn't mention the standard port fee ($19.95 and $9.95 per year) applies. Naive me- I didn't think they would charge me to port their own number!

They don't. Where did you get your information from?

Others have ADDED their Plus to their account, and kept the same number with no additional cost. You are not porting your MJ number to the Plus, you are just adding the Plus to your existing account.

Edit: Just checked AGAIN, and their policy has not changed in the last day or so since others have been allowed to use the same number on the Plus with no extra cost. Part of the chat:

Ned: Yes you can keep the same phone number on your magic jack device, only you have to do is that please register the new magic jack plus device under your same magic jack account.

Nailgunner: Great..is there any additional cost?

Ned: No

Matt9876 · Post by **Matt9876** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 11:04 am

Baja Boojum wrote: They didn't mention the standard port fee ($19.95 and $9.95 per year) applies.

Can someone confirm if the fee of $9.95 a year for a ported number to a MJ+ is for real ?

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 11:33 am

Matt9876 wrote:
Baja Boojum wrote: They didn't mention the standard port fee ($19.95 and $9.95 per year) applies.
Can someone confirm if the fee of $9.95 a year for a ported number to a MJ+ is for real ?

They are going to ban me soon from their chat, but I just checked with them and UNBELIEVABLY they ARE now charging an annual 9.95 fee on top of the 19.95 initial fee for their number porting.

I would assume anyone who has previously done it is safe from the annual fee. But who knows, it is MJ.

Since I was on there with a different person, I did confirm again that there is no charge to use your current MJ number on the Plus. But still, who are they kidding, $20, and then $10 a year just to keep your landline number? For anyone thinking of doing this, set up a GoogleVoice account, and see if they you can port the number into them. Their screen will tell you right away what, if any, options you have on porting. You can always port to them and have GV forward your number to MJ.

Matt9876 · Post by **Matt9876** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 11:44 am

Thanks Nailgunner, Guess the $9.95 per year fee isn't so bad, just don't like the idea of a yearly fee.

The MJ+ I just purchased will likely end up on a ported land line number.

Thank You for checking.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 12:08 pm

Matt9876 wrote:Thanks Nailgunner, Guess the $9.95 per year fee isn't so bad, just don't like the idea of a yearly fee.

The MJ+ I just purchased will likely end up on a ported land line number.

Thank You for checking.

You're welcome. You're being kinder about it than I would be if I was thinking of porting. I can see a one-time fee since there is a cost incurred by an employee to do the transfer. But an annual fee? There is no additional cost incurred by them beyond the initial transfer, that I am aware of. Seems to me like they are taking advantage of those that want to keep old numbers. Either that or it's such a pain in the ass and they are trying to discourage porting.

Baja Boojum · Post by **Baja Boojum** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 2:22 pm

I also thought you do it exactly as you say, Nailgunner, but I wanted to double check. So this morning when I got into the chat the magicJack representative said that I'd have to pay the port fee for my old magicJack number. I asked twice (I didn't save the transcript- darn) and she confirmed it. She said I'd have to first get a new number, then request a 'port' of the old one.

It's possible she didn't understand, but I did make it clear I wanted to use my current magicJack number. She may be wrong, or confused, but that itself would piss me off.

Either way, whether she was right or wrong, I decided to give netTALK a try.

Maybe I should change this topic to read: "There Might be a Fee to Port Old magicJack Number (Depending on Who You Talk To!)"

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 3:03 pm

Baja Boojum wrote:I also thought you do it exactly as you say, Nailgunner, but I wanted to double check. So this morning when I got into the chat the magicJack representative said that I'd have to pay the port fee for my old magicJack number. I asked twice (I didn't save the transcript- darn) and she confirmed it. She said I'd have to first get a new number, then request a 'port' of the old one.

It's possible she didn't understand, but I did make it clear I wanted to use my current magicJack number. She may be wrong, or confused, but that itself would piss me off.

Either way, whether she was right or wrong, I decided to give netTALK a try.

Maybe I should change this topic to read: "There Might be a Fee to Port Old magicJack Number (Depending on Who You Talk To!)"

Scott200 reported in here at least a week ago it worked that way for him, so I have little doubt.

Their customer service obviously lacks. It's why I always get at least 2 answers from them to see if they match. That said, I find it no more frustrating dealing with them than I do talking to almost any customer service reps, whether it's on the phone or via chat. Generally, they all punch the question or keywords into a database and see what pops up. Which could be the problem here. I'm not saying you did, but you keep using the word "porting". If she typed port/porting on her computer it gave her the wrong responses.

I've mentioned it in other threads earlier, and it's too late for you, but for others, do NOT mention the words port or porting. You are NOT porting your old MJ number to your new MJPlus. You are ADDING the Plus to your current account. Tell them that when you register your Plus and you can keep your MJ number for free, unless they change their mind tomorrow.

Baja Boojum · Post by **Baja Boojum** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 4:36 pm

Nailgunner:

I actually believe you and scotty, and not chat. I don't think I used the word port with her, but even if I did they should get it right. I wasn't in the mood to try again until I got the right answer.

Two additional factors were about a year ago I kept having the familiar continuous dial tone/can't select telephone vs headset problem and tech support was pretty bad. I eventually got it working, but I'm not sure how! Also, the other day when I went to the magicJack website to order the Plus, it's not clear right away how much it will cost. Compare that with the netTALK website. I'm not as hard on magicJack's business practices as others, but I think they can do better.

In general, I'm pretty satisfied with the magicJack considering the price, but I guess this latest confusion (even if it was my fault) was the last straw. If netTALK wasn't competitively priced, I'd have fought it out with chat.

By the way- Thanks to you and all the other magicJack experts in this forum. You've been invaluable in using and troubleshooting the gadget.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Sun Sep 18, 2011 5:15 pm

Baja Boojum wrote:Also, the other day when I went to the magicJack website to order the Plus, it's not clear right away how much it will cost. Compare that with the netTALK website. I'm not as hard on magicJack's business practices as others, but I think they can do better.

I'm a fan of MJ for 2 reasons only. It's real cheap and I get real good call quality. Other than to find out info for this forum the last time I had to actually use customer service was when I registered a new device last November.

That said, "you think they can do better" is the understatement of the year. I don't know what business school Dan, or whoever runs this thing, went to but they should be ashamed. I thought that when they partnered/merged with VocalTec that things would change. It still is a joke.

Look at the new Plus product. It's in the neighborhood of half a year past the promised date. Announced at CES in January it was expected to be 49.95. They tell multiple reviewers it will be 49.95. Their first automated phone line sold it to a lucky few for 49.95. Then overnight it's changed to 69.95. They told reviewers it would be 19.95 a year to renew. Now it's 29.95 unless you renew for multiple years. Supposedly someone in the MJ PR department recently told a reviewer that current MJ users will get the Plus at 50% off. I'm not holding my breath. No offense to the Three Stooges, rest their souls, but they could do a better job of managing this mess.

Good luck with your NetTalk and the remaining years on your MJ.

Edit: The one good(?) thing to come out of your chat with them was finding out their new policy of charging an annual fee for porting. I would love to know which one of the 3 knuckleheads thought up that one.

cell14 · Post by **cell14** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 12:01 am

Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2011 4:15 pm Post subject:
Baja Boojum wrote:
Also, the other day when I went to the magicJack website to order the Plus, it's not clear right away how much it will cost. Compare that with the netTALK website. I'm not as hard on magicJack's business practices as others, but I think they can do better.

I'm a fan of MJ for 2 reasons only. It's real cheap and I get real good call quality. Other than to find out info for this forum the last time I had to actually use customer service was when I registered a new device last November.

That said, "you think they can do better" is the understatement of the year. I don't know what business school Dan, or whoever runs this thing, went to but they should be ashamed. I thought that when they partnered/merged with VocalTec that things would change. It still is a joke.

Look at the new Plus product. It's in the neighborhood of half a year past the promised date. Announced at CES in January it was expected to be 49.95. They tell multiple reviewers it will be 49.95. Their first automated phone line sold it to a lucky few for 49.95. Then overnight it's changed to 69.95. They told reviewers it would be 19.95 a year to renew. Now it's 29.95 unless you renew for multiple years. Supposedly someone in the MJ PR department recently told a reviewer that current MJ users will get the Plus at 50% off. I'm not holding my breath. No offense to the Three Stooges, rest their souls, but they could do a better job of managing this mess.

I am also sticking to MJ for the reasons you mentioned, but the margin is getting narrower. If they really decide to hike the price I may be tipping. Certainly if Nettalk or Localphone make number porting possible or GV outgoing remains free for foreseeable future .
Their business practices have always been a mystery to me. My gut feeling is that Dan simply enjoys to behave like a sociopath.
That yearly porting fee is absurd and I do not understand why somebody would pay that.
If I may make one prediction : Once the MJ plus is in full swing, whenever that might be, count on forced upgrade It does no9t cost a penny more to operate MJ plus and the $ 10.48( that " regulatory fee" goes directly to Dan's pocket) is pure profit. If let's say 5 million customers refuse to 'upgrade" that's like one Balm Beach oceanfront mansion disappearing every 9 weeks or so. Most likely, there will be no more replacement "classic" dongles and very soon there will be a mysterious drop in " classic" line quality with " upgrade" as a suggested remedy.

ctbear · Post by **ctbear** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 1:16 am

Wait seriously!??!?!?!

So 29.95/year + 9.95/year additional fee + one time number porting fee of $19.95 to Port my landline number to MJ+!??!

Where did this 9.95/year additional fee come from...it's completely out of the blue. I've been told that $19.95 fee would be applied once to port the number and that's it. This is absurd and complete BULL.

Has anyone ported a number and confirmed that this is indeed the new "pricing"?? It seems the appeal for the MJ+ keeps dropping each day...

scotty200 · Post by **scotty200** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 1:28 am

i got a Canada number and have to pay 10.00 a year extra now so maybe they think they can make some extra money on us numbers now too good ole Dan

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 1:46 am

cell14 wrote:My gut feeling is that Dan simply enjoys to behave like a sociopath.

I don't go quite that far. I just think him, or whoever is giving him advice on how to run a business, are borderline clueless. How do you spend at least a year developing a product and then still not decide on the price before it's made available?

Somewhere in another thread are some test calls I made early on in it's availability where one price was quoted when I called from my MJ phone, and another price was quoted when i called from either my cell or GV number. The SAME 800 number. Seriously, I don't know how you can screw up something as simple as what you are going to charge before you make it available. It's like Larry says lets charge 49.95, Mo says lets charge 69.95, and Curly says lets charge both and the other 2 agree. I just don't get it.

ctbear · Post by **ctbear** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 1:50 am

$9.95/year extra for number porting according to rep. The extra fee will apply the next year cycle on the date the number porting is done.

Damn this new fee....can Net Talk Duo please support number porting. I hope they don't put a fee like that. It would seal the deal for me.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 1:54 am

ctbear wrote:Wait seriously!??!?!?!

So 29.95/year + 9.95/year additional fee + one time number porting fee of $19.95 to Port my landline number to MJ+!??!

Where did this 9.95/year additional fee come from...it's completely out of the blue. I've been told that $19.95 fee would be applied once to port the number and that's it. This is absurd and complete BULL.

Has anyone ported a number and confirmed that this is indeed the new "pricing"?? It seems the appeal for the MJ+ keeps dropping each day...

It's totally out of the blue. Baja mentioned it in his initial post so I checked with customer service and they confirmed it, WITHOUT me asking about the annual charge. I asked what was the charge to port my land-line and he/she posted the one-time charge and the annual charge, and then confirmed it applies to either the regular MJ or the Plus. Don't need anyone who has ported to confirm it, just take 2 minutes and customer service will confirm it for you. I would always check with them first regardless, because like with any company, what they did with customer A on Tuesday may not be what they do with customer B on Friday.

Edit: I see you checked while I was typing away. Another policy that makes no sense. Taking advantage of people who want to keep their number. Much easier to see if it can be ported to GoogleVoice and bypass MJ's porting altogether.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 2:08 am

ctbear wrote:$9.95/year extra for number porting according to rep. The extra fee will apply the next year cycle on the date the number porting is done.

Damn this new fee....can Net Talk Duo please support number porting. I hope they don't put a fee like that. It would seal the deal for me.

I noticed a few days ago in the NetTalk forum that it may be close:

https://forum.nettalk.com/viewtopic.php ... 997678d777

I'm not sure but I think they have been "close" to it for a while now.

Baja Boojum · Post by **Baja Boojum** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 7:42 am

I don't really have a real big problem with all these fees. Both magicJack and netTALK are still bargains compared to land lines and alternatives, like Vonage.

The real problems, as nailgunner and others are saying, are the lack of good information and consistancy. Had I gotten complete and accurate information from magicJack, I might have stayed with them even if there was a fee to keep my old number.

I used to work in a very tough customer service environment where accurate information was critical, in fact life-saving. I guess my standard may be too high.

cell14 · Post by **cell14** » Mon Sep 19, 2011 10:03 pm

cell14 wrote:
My gut feeling is that Dan simply enjoys to behave like a sociopath.

I don't go quite that far. I just think him, or whoever is giving him advice on how to run a business, are borderline clueless. How do you spend at least a year developing a product and then still not decide on the price before it's made available?

I am not sure here. This question periodically popped up since i joined the forum and some people offered this answer years ago.
The thing is, there are certain things about running a business you can figure out without having a degree from Harvard.
The other problem is that we are not talking about a bunch of oil fields or gold mines, where you can, at least at current prices , be borderline clueless and still make tons of money but about a tech company operating in an increasingly competitive environment with narrow profit margins. I have hard time imagining that somebody can stay successful for four years plus take out millions for his lavish lifestyle while being borderline clueless about this type of business without bellying up.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Tue Sep 20, 2011 10:28 am

cell14 wrote:I have hard time imagining that somebody can stay successful for four years plus take out millions for his lavish lifestyle while being borderline clueless about this type of business without bellying up.

I haven't looked, and don't come remotely close to caring enough to look, at the financial health of MJ. But if he made enough money when the company went public, he could be maintaining his lavish lifestyle off of the cash from that as opposed to the cash from the business the last few years.

He seems to have a clear understanding of the internet phone business. I'm not suggesting he is borderline clueless ABOUT this type of business. But after watching closely the way that the roll-out of the Plus has been handled, I'm suggesting that he is borderline clueless about how to RUN a business.

With the HUGE head start MJ had, the competition should be chasing them. But MJ now seems to be chasing NetTalk in product development. Just my opinion, but I attribute that to a badly run business as opposed to enjoying behaving like a sociopath, although it could be a mixture of both. History is full of people that got lucky on one product, made millions, thought it would last forever, spent money like drunken sailors, and ended up with nothing.

Matt9876 · Post by **Matt9876** » Thu Sep 22, 2011 4:35 pm

The fee to port is a one time $19.95 to port your land line number.

EDIT: Sorry I posted this in the wrong thread but the information is correct for land line porting. Big correction no second year and beyond fee of $9.95

balla123 · Post by **balla123** » Thu Sep 22, 2011 5:02 pm

You are now chatting with 'Aram'

Your Issue ID for this chat is ---------------

Aram: Hello, how may I help you?

me: hi

Aram: Hi there

me: i would like to know if i have to pay a fee to have my magicjack number ported on the new magicjack plus

Aram: There's no fee for that, Just register your mj plus to the same account / email to get your old mj number

me: do i get a discount for the new magicjack?

Aram: It is $69.95 and it has 1 year free of service

Aram: I have not heard from you in a while. Do you wish to continue this chat session?

me: yes

me: sorry, computer froze

me: how much is it after the first year?

Aram: 1-year renewal = $29.95

Aram: 5-year renewal = $99.75

me: is there a 9.95 per year additional fee?

Aram: only $29.95

me: $29.95 flat?

me: no tax?

Aram: 4.8% for regulatory expense, surcharges or taxes will be added to your purchase

balla123 · Post by **balla123** » Thu Sep 22, 2011 5:05 pm

http://news.tmcnet.com/news/-magicjack- ... 770729.htm

The magicJack Plus will be sold for $69.95 but all current users of the original magicJack will be able to upgrade for only 50% of that cost for
60 days.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Thu Sep 22, 2011 5:08 pm

balla123 wrote:http://news.tmcnet.com/news/-magicjack- ... 770729.htm

The magicJack Plus will be sold for $69.95 but all current users of the original magicJack will be able to upgrade for only 50% of that cost for
60 days.

That's the rumor. But we cannot seem to find anywhere that MJ agrees with the rumor and is allowing purchase at the discounted price.

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Thu Sep 22, 2011 5:12 pm

balla123 wrote:
me: i would like to know if i have to pay a fee to have my magicjack number ported on the new magicjack plus

Aram: There's no fee for that, Just register your mj plus to the same account / email to get your old mj number

The "porting" fees mentioned by Matt are for porting from your land-line or cell. They will add the Plus to your current MJ account for free, with the same number being used, there is no porting involved.

Shred · Post by **Shred** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 8:42 pm

nailgunner wrote:
Matt9876 wrote:
Baja Boojum wrote: They didn't mention the standard port fee ($19.95 and $9.95 per year) applies.
Can someone confirm if the fee of $9.95 a year for a ported number to a MJ+ is for real ?
They are going to ban me soon from their chat, but I just checked with them and UNBELIEVABLY they ARE now charging an annual 9.95 fee on top of the 19.95 initial fee for their number porting.

I would assume anyone who has previously done it is safe from the annual fee. But who knows, it is MJ..

Do you know of anyone that succesfully ported a number before they started saying this?? and you know they will charge anyway... Its mj!

bigjoet · Post by **bigjoet** » Wed Nov 23, 2011 7:01 am

I know what you all are saying, I get it.
but for all the B-ing goin on, the cost for mj per YEAR you think they really make a boatload of coin? so what if you have to pay a port-ing fee
are they not allowed to make a little money, y'all could go back to verizon
or at&t and pay $30-$100++ a month A MONTH they are doing me a favor getting me out of my cablevision bill at $49 bucks a month for VoIP c'mon grow up, for a hundred bucks I get 5 YEARS.... 5 YEARS for what it cost me for 2 months before with the rip off kings.
you all sound pathetic.

tek8550 · Post by **tek8550** » Sat Nov 26, 2011 9:46 pm

I agree with bigjoet. If it works it is still cheaper than my current monthly fee with ATT.

Gorrdy · Post by **Gorrdy** » Tue Nov 29, 2011 1:02 pm

The fee for porting is one thing, pay for the small extra time involved, but yearly fee is crap, what exactly are you charging for? I ported my number over a couple months ago and there was NO mention of the fee so they had better not ever charge me it.

cell14 · Post by **cell14** » Wed Nov 30, 2011 8:19 pm

I ported my number over a couple months ago and there was NO mention of the fee so they had better not ever charge me it.

Oh, the WILL charge you, unless you do the same thing many of us are doing- start looking at the growing choice of better and less crooked providers.

aerospacecase · Post by **aerospacecase** » Fri Dec 02, 2011 4:05 pm

My original MJ service was to end today. Yesterday, I tried to get the $34.95 offer for MJ+ but the only ad that showed up on the dial pad was for extending to five years. I extended my service one more year for $20 then when I plugged in the device again, the 1/2 off offer appeared! These guys will do anything to squeeze any extra dollars out of their customers.

The main reasons for wanting to upgrade to MJ+ was so I could plug directly into my router instead of my daughter's computer, where the signal was not reliable, and to be able to move my landline number from Vonage. (I originally had the unlimited Vonage plan which was about $30 a month. I then switched it to $10 a month with unlimited incoming and 200 minutes outgoing. They jacked it up to $13 so I am hoping that MJ+ will work as good as Vonage. If so, I will port the number, which is a critical requirement for my wife.)

I am not happy to find out about the $10/year porting fee. But if the MJ+ works as advertised, paying $40 a year ($3.33 per month) is still much better than even my limited Vonage plan. My main concern is if Vocaltec goes out of business, that my ported number will be lost.

Curt31 · Post by **Curt31** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 2:44 am

nailgunner wrote:
Matt9876 wrote:
Baja Boojum wrote: They didn't mention the standard port fee ($19.95 and $9.95 per year) applies.
Can someone confirm if the fee of $9.95 a year for a ported number to a MJ+ is for real ?
They are going to ban me soon from their chat, but I just checked with them and UNBELIEVABLY they ARE now charging an annual 9.95 fee on top of the 19.95 initial fee for their number porting.

I would assume anyone who has previously done it is safe from the annual fee. But who knows, it is MJ.

Since I was on there with a different person, I did confirm again that there is no charge to use your current MJ number on the Plus. But still, who are they kidding, $20, and then $10 a year just to keep your landline number? For anyone thinking of doing this, set up a GoogleVoice account, and see if they you can port the number into them. Their screen will tell you right away what, if any, options you have on porting. You can always port to them and have GV forward your number to MJ.

Hi new here just wondering if anyone has tried this, porting your number to Google Voice and then having it forward the number to MJ. I was considering MJ Plus but I don't like the 10 dollar a year porting fee as a matter of fact I'm not sure it's even legal! that's right this may not be legal I plan on calling the FCC they set the rules on this, so we will see I have a link and will try to find and post it.

Tom

nailgunner · Post by **nailgunner** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 3:49 am

You can't port most, if any, land-lines into GoogleVoice, so if it is one, you're sol with that idea. It's always possible that the occasional land-line will go through, depending on where it originally came from. Once you set up a GV account it takes about 5 seconds to find out.

Any number that they eventually port can be forwarded to your MJ, as long as you can get your MJ number "verified" by GV. In the past, it didn't always work for stretches of time for various users.

cell14 · Post by **cell14** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 6:46 pm

It is legal to charge fees for porting in, it is just not legal to refuse a port OUT if the customer refuses to pay up a port out charge.
You can port to GV from MJ by using a major cellular provider ( and some MVNOs) as a intermediary.
But it does not always work- google voice is unpredictable. They never completed my port and I had to call AMEX to get the $ 20 back. There can also be some problems with porting the number OUT of GV if you later decide that you want to go with a different provider.

Curt31 · Post by **Curt31** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 7:27 pm

cell14 wrote:It is legal to charge fees for porting in, it is just not legal to refuse a port OUT if the customer refuses to pay up a port out charge.
You can port to GV from MJ by using a major cellular provider ( and some MVNOs) as a intermediary.
But it does not always work- google voice is unpredictable. They never completed my port and I had to call AMEX to get the $ 20 back. There can also be some problems with porting the number OUT of GV if you later decide that you want to go with a different provider.

Just not sure it's legal to charge that 10 dollar a year fee forever for porting your number that's what I'm saying. Glad you guys told me about the pitfalls of trying to use GV wouldn't want my number trapped in their system some how. Thanks

Tom

cell14 · Post by **cell14** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 5:04 pm

Just not sure it's legal to charge that 10 dollar a year fee forever for porting your number that's what I'm saying. Glad you guys told me about the pitfalls of trying to use GV wouldn't want my number trapped in their system some how. Thanks

That's probably legal, at least as long as they disclose it. You can port your number to a better provider like Callcentric or Anveo and keep Google voice for free outgoing calls and you can incorporate both of them on Obi.

City Builder · Post by **City Builder** » Thu May 03, 2012 3:26 am

Sorry, I'm confused.

I have a regular MJ that works on an old laptop but I want to get the MJ plus since my old laptop is about to die (the cooling fans are scraping and about to quit one of these days), so I want to get a MJ plus so that I don't have to use that laptop anymore.

Is it then going to cost me additional money to use the MJ plus with my current MJ telephone number?

Thanks

bitstopjoe · Post by **bitstopjoe** » Thu May 03, 2012 5:51 am

City Builder wrote:Sorry, I'm confused.

I have a regular MJ that works on an old laptop but I want to get the MJ plus since my old laptop is about to die (the cooling fans are scraping and about to quit one of these days), so I want to get a MJ plus so that I don't have to use that laptop anymore.

Is it then going to cost me additional money to use the MJ plus with my current MJ telephone number?

Thanks

No extra charge to use your same MJ number on the Plus, but if you have time left on your orig MJ you will not be able to transfer it to the Plus.

City Builder · Post by **City Builder** » Thu May 03, 2012 6:55 am

bitstopjoe wrote: No extra charge to use your same MJ number on the Plus, but if you have time left on your orig MJ you will not be able to transfer it to the Plus.

Okay, I think I understand what you mean. I just reupped on my original MJ 6 months ago for 2 years, so if I hook up the MJ plus to that account, basically I'd be losing out on the 1.5 years that I have left on the original MJ and would just get the 1 year from buying the new MJ+

Well if that is the case, then I suppose I'll just let the laptop run until it fizzles out since it's so old theres nothing I want to do with it (except to turn it off so I don't need to listen to the scraping noise from the fans

)

HoundCat · Post by **HoundCat** » Sun Sep 15, 2013 1:02 pm

magicJack has had to change their service plans and adding or upgrading methods and options since releasing the first magicJack Plus.

I test computer hardware and software professionally. I also evaluate, recommend, install, and maintain hardware and software for a number of clients and friends. In doing so, I became a magicJack customer and later recommended the device to my friend and landlord where I live.

Originally, there was the first magicJack device that required a computer. The device was purchased and the 5 year plan was added. Using the magicJack with a computer was extremely problematic unless it was connected to a fast machine with a lot of memory, large hard drive, and few apps running (it used a lot of resources). The device would often cut out, turn anyone speaking into, into, into, Max Headroom, and would often fail to finish initializing and syncing with the softphone app in time to answer a call.

So, I took an old computer, stuck in a hard drive that was just big enough to install Windows XP SP3 and an anti-virus app and turned it into my rather large dedicated Vonage, I mean magicJack service outlet. Since then, I've been relatively problem free - magicJack has been running, and I don't have to fuss with the computer or the magicJack device at all.

Clients and friends use, abuse, move, lose, break, etc. things they have, so using a whole computer to plug one magicJack device into was not really a practical plan to recommend and implement with the home owner here, but magicJack plus was released. We already have a wireless router wired to the LAN and Cable Modem, and were ready to go. I had heard from the commercials and infomercials that existing magicJack customers could add this new magicJack Plus, keep their current phone number, keep the years they had paid for, and not require a computer (which was the bottleneck and problem with using the first magicJack as mentioned above), so, it sounded great, like any other VoIP device now (Vonage, Time Warner, AT&T, etc. Internet Phone Service that has its own device that just needs to connect to a broadband network). The service has been working pretty well since upgrading, but the real issue is what everyone is posting about here and on other boards / forums / pages...

The process of adding the first magicJack Plus, registering the device, and transferring the phone number and years was not as simple as it seemed from the ads. You all know how little Live Chat with customer service can be in getting to the bottom of all of this, so, here's what options they REALLY had available at that time.

- If you added the magicJack Plus as an additional device on the same account, both devices would remain active, and both could be used; however, the years purchased while using the original magicJack remained with that device and couldn't be transferred to the new Plus device. In other words, purchasing additional years does not add them to the service, but adds them to the device that is operating on the service. So, the old magicJack had a five year plan, two of them had already passed, so there were three years left, and the new magicJack Plus, although sharing the service (phone number, network, etc.) only had a year plus the additional six months that were added as part of the promotion for the device. More years had to be purchased for that device or the device would become inactive after the time expired for that device. Once the device has been deactivated for any reason, magicJack claims that it cannot be reactivated and another device must be purchased to continue service (except the original magicJack still worked, as problematic as it was). Customers didn't like this and posted all over the world on site after site how dissatisfied they were with the magicJack, the magicJack Plus, and the misleading advertisements that was drawing more people in only to disappoint them when the real story was understood.

Now, it's 2013. The magicJack and magicJack Plus have both been used by millions of customers, many of whom had to jump through hoops, and spend hours searching for answers and options for their magicJack device and service issues. magicJack Plus 2014 has arrived, and with it new registration / transfer options. They are still not ideal, but they address the issue people had regarding transferring years if they upgrade or add a new device. Here are the options that someone who purchases the new, magicJack Plus has when registering their device.

- The device can be added to the service as a new device, providing the same options as before - each device keeps its own time bundle how long it will function until the device is deactivated or additional years are added by purchasing additional years per device.

The only advantages with that option is that both devices function on the same phone number at the same time so one can stay at home or the office, while another can be used on vacation, on business, across town, or across the globe, while the other device remains functional, taking calls, taking voicemail, etc. (People could sign up for a service like Google Voice if they want to ring phones at multiple locations for a lot less hassle, headaches, time, and money).

- The other option during the registration process is to 'replace' the existing device with the new magicJack Plus. This option will transfer any and all time that has been added to the service on the other device and associate the time with the new device from the point when the registration process for the new device has been completed and confirmed by the customer.

The drawback of going with that option is that this option will deactivate and replace the original device, leaving one active device with no other device sharing its service or phone number.

So with those two options, the real decision is whether to pay for additional years on the new device in order to have two devices that work, sharing the phone number,etc. Or to save money, have the existing years still available, but make the first device useless as anything more than a paperweight from that point forward (unless you're a tech geek like me).

There you go. I hope you all have more info now and can make the right decision that works for you. I guess it's time for me to make that decision and finish registering my new magicJack Plus 2014 - I stopped at the (add a new device or replace the existing device and transfer years) screen to research my options and subsequently share my findings with you in the process. Happy VoiPing to you all... I hope.

magicJack and magicJack Plus Support, Reviews, FAQs and Tricks

Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

Re: Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

Re: Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

Re: Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

The magicJack Plus will be sold for $69.95 but all current u

Re: The magicJack Plus will be sold for $69.95 but all curre

Re: Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

seriously

Re: Fee to Port Old magicJack Number

Adding MagicJack Plus 2014 to existing account