Packeteers
Premium
join:2005-06-18
Forest Hills, NY
|  $59+5yrs ever Cheaper?
while there's plenty of room for improvement, I'm satisfied with my MagicJack for the savings it provides me (no pots at home), and fully intend to extend it's activation once my first year is up.
I was just wondering if veterans of this product have ever seen the 5 year extension go for less than $59, or if it goes on "sale" at certain times of the year with some additional bonus benefit. |
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amigo_boy
join:2005-07-22
Tempe, AZ
 ·Cox HSI
 ·magicjack.com
1 edit | said by Packeteers  :I was just wondering if veterans of this product have ever seen the 5 year extension go for less than $59, or if it goes on "sale" at certain times of the year with some additional bonus benefit. I don't recall anything cheaper.
The 5-year ($59) deal is better than the 5-year gimmick I was presented with when I purchased my MJ over a year ago. At that time, the purchase process offered a "5-year gold plan" for $59. The way it was worded, you'd think you were buying 5 more years. But, it was really a replacement of the 1-year plan. Therefore, I only got 4 years for $59.
I don't know how the initial purchase works today. But, the post-purchase 5-year deal is better than what I got.
Realistically, at $1 per month there's not much reason to hold your breath for a better deal. (Are you really going to be excited over saving 25 cents per month?)
Likewise, considering the shenanigans MJ pulls (like shutting down conference-call services without refund to those affected; imposing 30-minute call caps; "excessive use" terminations), is it really worth gambling $50 (non-refundable) to save 67 cents per month (which is what you save when you pay $20 per year)?
Anyone buying 5 years should realize it's a gamble. Knowing what I do now, I don't think the gamble (67 cents per month) is worth the risk (based upon MagicJack's questionable business practices).
Mark |
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Packeteers
Premium
join:2005-06-18
Forest Hills, NY
| amigo - thanks for that reply - sorry you got screwed out of a year.
»secure.magicjack.com/my/index.html
it seems now it's online 1+5 or store 1 online +5, either way nets out to 6 years.
I'm probably going to pay MJ $100 by year end, $60 for +5 years, and $40 for overseas calls.
If anyone else has any reason I should wait or not prepay overseas, please let me know here.
does prepaying for overseas balance ever expire?
I mean does any balance carry over year to year? |
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amigo_boy
join:2005-07-22
Tempe, AZ
·Cox HSI
·magicjack.com
1 edit | said by Packeteers :If anyone else has any reason I should wait or not prepay overseas, please let me know here. Like I said in the prior post, it boils down to whether it's worth the risk of losing $60 to save 67 cents per month for 5 years.
VoIP companies go out of business without notice, and many have speculated that MJ can't survive under its original business model (advertisements which haven't panned out).
MJ has a history of conducting business and implementing policies like its run by PT Barnum. At times the quality of the entire service has diminished to the level of being unusable for some. One time it was a prolonged period affecting many.
MJ doesn't offer prorated refunds. If they go out of business, the service sucks, or they introduce a new service (like the "Femtocell" we've heard about for a year) your investment will be gone. (I seriously doubt MJ will transfer unused time for the existing service to the new one. Not when the existing service is just $1.67 per month.).
If you use the dongle, you have to be aware that the dongle fails for many people. You can't buy a replacement dongle. You have to go through hours of mindlessly scripted chatty support before they'll replace your dongle. Some people prefer to just buy a new dongle with 1 year of service every year (there's some question whether you can contact chatty support to have your original number assigned to the new dongle *before* using the new dongle.).
So, you have to keep in mind that you could eventually regret spending $60 in advance. Is that risk worth saving 67 cents per month?
For me, I regret buying 4 years at the time of purchase. I personally don't believe the savings is worth the risk of losing unused time. And, although I use MJ and don't foresee stopping, I'd rather encourage MJ to improve if it wants more of my money. I don't think it's good for MJ to believe they have people locked in for a number of years.
But, for many people, $60 isn't a lot to lose. Saving $40 over 5 years is a good return on investment. I think the bottom line is that you have to think of it as an investment, and you're placing a lot of confidence in the company. My experience for 18 months is that the company doesn't deserve that much confidence. Nor, the tacit approval of their behaviors by investing in them.
Mark |
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prestonlewis
Premium,MVM
join:2003-04-13
Sacramento, CA
·VoiceStick
| reply to Packeteers
MagicJack is a reliable and money savings device in my opinion.
I think all the comments about MJ blocking access to the expensive conference calling services is a bit over the top. Most conference call lines are VOIP to begin with. Add MJ's VOIP to another services' VOIP and the call would really stink.
However, I do think it's a bit too much to try to save on MJ by buying 5 years worth of service. MJ, Ooma and the other pre-pay VOIP providers almost certainly will not be around for the long term. Once people stop buying the product, the owner will change and who knows when that will happen.
Personally, I recommend you buy MJ one year at a time. |
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Packeteers
Premium
join:2005-06-18
Forest Hills, NY | reply to Packeteers
how much is 1 year extra at a time?
I don't see where that price is offerred. |
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amigo_boy
join:2005-07-22
Tempe, AZ
·Cox HSI
·magicjack.com
| reply to prestonlewis
said by prestonlewis :MagicJack is a reliable and money savings device in my opinion. The problem is that that tends to be variable for many people.
Last January-March the service was unusable for a lot of people, probably due to MJ overselling capacity during the holiday season. There were some regions like Seattle that were completely unusable for a couple months.
When MJ pushes one of its non-optional upgrades, that has also negatively affected some people. The last one caused a lot of people to suddenly begin hearing echos (reported on the magicjacksupport.com forum).
And then there are changes in the service policies which negatively affect people. Not just banning the rural conference-call, but implementing a 30-minute call cap back in Dec-January. Imposing a nebulously-defined "excessive use" policy a year ago, without warning.
All those things are to be expected (to various degrees) from any service. The problem is when someone bought MJ to use those con-call services (or talk for longer than 30 minutes, or they live in Seattle), suddenly they're are out money because MJ doesn't refund unused time.
I agree it's still a good deal even if the user experiences unforeseen problems or changes in service features.
Mark |
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amigo_boy
join:2005-07-22
Tempe, AZ
·Cox HSI
·magicjack.com
| reply to Packeteers
said by Packeteers :how much is 1 year extra at a time? I don't see where that price is offerred. $20. It's purchased through the my.magicjack.com account portal, where you configure 911, call forwarding, etc.
Mark |
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DocLarge
Premium
join:2004-09-08
2 edits | reply to Packeteers
I Bought the 5-year plan ($57.95)
Honestly, some of you "kill me" with worrying about " 67 cents" per month or per year. If you're watching your money that close, then you probably shouldn't have bought MJ anyway!  Seriously, I've been told the call quality is excellent with the calls I've been making since purchasing mine, to include when I connect it to my notebook via my Altell broadband card and make calls.
Personally, I haven't experienced any issues while making or receiving calls. If there are issues originating "on the users end" I'd first check and see if you're running your phone on the same subnet as your data traffic; it's best to put voice and data in different subnets (vlans). After that, I'd look at the quality of the router you're using. If your router can implement "QoS," then you're better off. As far as paying for the 5 year plan, if I can't afford $57 for this, then, again, I must be too broke to use it in the first place.
All this being said, I do have a bone to pick with MJ on another front (stay tuned...)
Jay |
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sabresfan
Sabresfan
join:2009-05-03
Hope Mills, NC
| reply to Packeteers
Re: $59+5yrs ever Cheaper?
I think MJ is making progress in that there are less people giving bad reviews about it all the time. If they can manage to leave well enough alone with the updates that always seem to have a negative side effect for a whole bunch of people this would solve a lot of their problems. The best thing they could do now is go another six month's without an update. I don't see as many posts about the call quality being terrible as much as there use to be. If their service ever gets to the point where it's not worth it anymore at least you can port your number out now. |
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