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than dialing the telephone through traditional phone lines; and the sound was impressive save a little background static. However, along the way I found a few limitations.

MagicJack is geared primarily toward Microsoft Windows PCs rather than Macs. It operates just fine on a Mac, albeit some features do not work:

1) No sound through the computer's speakers or bluetooth headset

2) No caller ID
3) No call waiting
4) No contacts list
5) No call list

Like all VOIP telephony these days, MagicJack phone service won't be available if your electricity goes out. And most frustrating for MagicJack users, since January 2008 MagicJack has repeatedly promised that their engineers are "working on" rolling out phone number portability so that users won't have to make the painful switch to a totally new phone number. Unfortunately, thus far we haven't seen any movement in that direction.

Despite MagicJack's few drawbacks, I still recommend this leading VOIP service for cheap, unlimited long-distance calling if nothing more. With its low cost of $19.95 per year, it equals out to roughly $1.66 per month, saving those who call long distance often a bundle of money. Furthermore, the plug-and-play device really is easy to set up and get going. For more information on MagicJack, see their website @ www.magicjack.com.

To summarize, here's what to look for in terms of quality in a VOIP provider:

1) Does the service offer phone number portability (can you use your current phone number)?
2) Is the phone service that much cheaper than traditional or cell phone service?
3) Will you get unlimited local, national, and in some cases, international calling?
4) How is the sound quality? Is there too much static on the line? Does the sound become choppy when you're performing a memory-intensive task on your computer?
5) Will you receive all-inclusive features including call waiting, caller ID, and voicemail?
6) Does the service have a workaround in case the electricity goes out? For example, Vonage will forward your calls to your cell or traditional phone.

Learn more about this author, Daniel J. Gansle.
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