Currently it is with Spectrum (Charter) at $20 a month. I don't need anything fancy. I do need caller ID so I know who to ignore, as well as voice mail. I wouldn't even bother with that except that the one place I get poor or no cell phone reception is at home.

I have been with magic jack for years and the quality seems to get worse each year even though my internet is sill fast.
Plus the app for some reason resets itself and needs to be relogged I go frequently so I miss calls.
I started years ago, maybe 10 years, it was $20 a year no other fees and quality was good. Now it is about $100 a year after all the fees and quality is way down.

Have started looking for other options myself. I am looking to port my number which can be costly or a pain.

We’ve had good luck with Ooma for several years now. Bought a refurb unit from the manufacturer and has done all we need it to. Last time I checked it costs me something like $4 and change a month after the one-time hardware purchase.

OOMA

I had looked at Ooma in the past but my number could not be ported.
Just checked and now says it can be. My magicJack is up in December. Maybe I’ll make the switch.

Currently I have a cordless phone system you plug the main base into the magicJack and the rest of the bases just need a wall outlet.
Will my current phones work with Ooma or will I need something else?

Another vote for OOMA. Been using it since 2010 or 11.

So if I get this, I pay just one time for the equipment, or do I pay a subscription each month as well? Ooma with a handset at Amazon - $90.00 There is also one without the handset for $79. Sounds a lot better than $240 a year.

I also don't care about "porting" my current phone number if it is going to cost more. I have no problem with getting a different one

^^^Either will work. If you already have handsets then perfect. If you need a new one the $90 looks like a decent deal. Beyond that it’s just the local taxes each month. Shouldn’t be more than $5-6.

quote:

Originally posted by Black92LX:
Currently I have a cordless phone system you plug the main base into the magicJack and the rest of the bases just need a wall outlet.
Will my current phones work with Ooma or will I need something else?

Same setup with Ooma.

I plugged my OOMA directly into the house phone jack in my "office" and added inexpensive phones in two other rooms. I had to insure that the incoming phone lines were disconnected at the box outside.

Are any of you ooma users using the wifi version of their hardware? Due to its location, connecting a cable between my router and where I’d need to put the ooma box would be very difficult, so I was thinking of using my wifi to make the connection. If you are using that approach, how does it function - ok, not ok? Thanks.

I'll be making a decision this weekend. I see that Best Buy (I have a local store) shows the Ooma box only for $79.99, the same as Amazon, or a box with two handsets for $139. I don't really need two, however.

OBI Talk with Google Voice? Not sure about phone number porting since you mentioned that.

I elected to just skip the porting since I'm using the cell number for most stuff.

I ended up getting three free Google Voice lines, then getting an an OBi200 and one of their phones so I have three lines. Business, Personal and Junk.

Then there is a paid service of something like $25 per year to assign E911 info to the numbers.

MagicJack customer here and perfectly happy with it. Sometimes after a big storm it needs to be reset, but all you have to do is unplug it, wait a few seconds and plug it back in. Stupid easy. Think I paid like $49/5years or something like that.

I am still using magic jack and I have not had any major problems.

I have a couple of them.

I have been using them for at least 5 years

If you have internet, why not use WiFi calling on your cell? We put in a mesh network with PoE routers to get coverage at the plant

quote:

Originally posted by steve495:
OBI Talk with Google Voice? Not sure about phone number porting since you mentioned that.

I elected to just skip the porting since I'm using the cell number for most stuff.

I ended up getting three free Google Voice lines, then getting an an OBi200 and one of their phones so I have three lines. Business, Personal and Junk.

Then there is a paid service of something like $25 per year to assign E911 info to the numbers.

I've used Obi devices as well. More options than Ooma or MJ, but a little more config as well - not that hard. An Obi100 (or whatever the newest 10x model is) & google voice will be your cheapest option.

My decision was based on being able to do Obi<>Obi calls internationally, the Google Voice was just a bonus (I could call Obi<>Obi from out of the US & then forward that call locally. I ordered a pizza to my grandmas house from Mexico). Now having cellular that works everywhere (pretty much) for free (other than the huge-ass normal charge), I don't use it.

I think my model is too old to use Google Voice now or I'd send it your way.

OK, I've made a decision … to not make a decision until next week. Other things have dibs on my paycheck right now.

quote:

Originally posted by egregore:
OK, I've made a decision … to not make a decision until next week. Other things have dibs on my paycheck right now.

May as well squeak it out to Black Friday May get a deal

Amazon has an Ooma Black Friday deal going now.

I got the standard unit for $65 after tax and will get 5% cash back of that.

The $30 to port my number kind of sucks but ohh well.
MagicJack quality is way down and the app has been giving nothing but problems.
Ooma is cheaper each year without the $30 fee. It will level out next year.

From my research, after reading this Thread, it seems Ooma is the way to go. I think I may even go for the Premium service for an additional $9.95 + fees a month bring the total to about $15.00 a month.