February 13, 2010

MagicJack - Best Review I've Found and It's Definitely Buyer Beware

Just read a great review over at The Coffee Desk of the VoIP option that is selling like hotcakes: the MagicJack. Written by a networking pro, this review goes into all the pros and cons including some serious privacy issues.

The Coffee Desk review scared me back off the MagicJack with its discussion of the contractual agreement that they can monitor all your phone activity and that there's ever increasing risk of viruses and hackers using MagicJack to do the same thing. Too Big Brother-y for me.

Back in August 2008, I investigated the MagicJack and shared with you, Dear Reader, what all I found. Since then, the MagicJack -- with its ever so tempting price point -- has just skyrocketed in sales. I'm thinking it's the combination of being so cheap (less than $2 a month for phone service) and so many folk having cell phones that landlines are being reevaluated as unnecessary at their standard price point.

That low cost made me go back and re-think the MagicJack. Once again, the answer for me is no sale.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Magic Jack is Adware

Magic Jack contains adware. It installs itself in AppData--a hidden folder--NOT in Program Files. It has no uninstall, nor any Exit function, and it autostarts with Windows without telling you. As a result, most users will never be able to get rid of it. And the only way to stop an online order in mid-stream is to kill it's process (you can't go back)--THEN you'll find that the order completed without your authorization. Their EULA is almost as long and complicated as that of Windows, it allows adware, and there's no contact number to call.

When I complained to their online chat tech support about these issues, I was told that no one else had complained of these "features"!

Unknown said...

Anon,
Thanks so much for taking the time to share this info! Scary to think how many folk have already installed this junk on their machines unknowingly.

There ought to be a law!

Thanks again for writing,
Reba

rachel said...

hm, i had magic jack for a year 2009-2010. i did not need it anymore so did not extend the contract. but uninstalled it without any problems - start menu, magic jack folder, uninstall option.
great idea, for the price, not a substitute to home phone though - only works if computer is on.

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