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January 24, 2008
Magic Jack - Local and Long Distance Calling for $20 a Year
Recently I received a Magic Jack sample. It is a small - about 2.5 inches by 1.5 inches by .75 inch - box with a USB port on one end and a telephone jack on the other. Simply plug the USB into your computer, download a small software application from Magic Jack, plug an ordinary phone into the Magic Jack and start making calls.
I was making calls within a couple of minutes. The calls were clear, at least equal to the Vonage service that I normally use. I did have a problem with one call, I was downloading a large document, during the download the call broke up a little, but returned to normal when the download was complete.
The Magic Jack features:
- three way calling
- caller ID
- call waiting
- call forwarding
- 911
- voice mail
The Magic Jack currently works with Microsoft Windows XP and Vista based computers, I tried it on a computer that has Vista Home Premium. There is a beta download for Macs but you have to download the update on a Windows based computer.
A few points to consider:
- your computer must be on to make or receive a call, but if your computer is turned off incoming calls can be forwarded or go to voice mail.
- you can not make calls to land lines and cell phones anywhere besides the US and Canada, but you can call anyone in the world if they are also using a Magic Jack (Magic Jack has announced that an international calling program is coming soon).
- It does not work with dial-up or satellite internet connections, you need to have cable or DSL broadband service.
- Magic Jack does not supports its use for faxing. According to Magic Jack's web site, it works 'sometimes'. I did not test the Magic Jacks faxing capabilities.
- There is an extensive list of area codes available, but not my local area code - Knoxville, Tennessee (865). The closest area code available was Nashville (615).
- You cannot port or transfer your current phone number. After picking an area code you will be assigned a new number. Magic Jack is planning on offering this feature soon.
The cost for the Magic Jack and one year of service is $39.95, service each year after the first is $19.95.
For more information go to Magic Jack.
What do you think? Have you tried it? There are some limitations, but $20 a year for local and long distance is a bargain.
Posted by Bob Gatton at 1:28 PM | Comments (301)
January 3, 2008
Pulse~Link's HDTV over Coax
A couple of weeks ago I was in Las Vegas attending the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show. Its a big show, about 130K attendees looking at products in almost 2 million square feet of exhibits. I was there for all four days of the show.
At the show I found TVs that were bigger, smaller portable electronics, but nothing really stuck out as a 'wow' new product. The thin LCD TVs from Hitachi and Samsung (both about 1.5 inches deep) were interesting, but more of a product refinement than a breakthrough.
I did take a look at a technology that might develop into a wow product - Pulse~Link's HDMI over coaxial cable chipset. This chipset will allow manufacturers to make products that can send an HDTV signal over the existing coax cable in a home. This could be great for retrofits. Get an HD source from one part of the house to a television in another using the coax cable that is already in the walls. One of the first products using Pulse~Link's technology will be from Gefen. And the Gefen product will feature the ability to send a IR remote control signal back to the source, so you can change the channels on your HD cable or satellite or control your Blu Ray or HD DVD player.
According to Gefen, their HDMI over coax solution is scheduled to ship this April, price has not yet been determined. I will keep you updated when more information becomes available.
Will this type of high definition over coax product be a problem solver or of interest to you?
Posted by Bob Gatton at 6:38 PM | Comments (16)
January 2, 2008
One Computer - Two Monitors
Last fall I got a new computer for my office. It is a nice Dell, nothing too extravagant, but the graphics card does support two monitors. Several weeks ago I bought a second monitor, I now have two Westinghouse Digital 22" widescreen monitors. Both are mounted on my office wall, so they don't use any space on my desk. I used OmniMount 75/100 CL cantilever wall brackets, I can tilt and swivel the monitors or pull one monitor closer to me.
So far I really like it. Before I installed the second monitor I was constantly:
- minimizing - maximizing windows,
- shuffling between tabs.
Now I can easily:
- drag a document or browser from one monitor to another,
- compare two versions of the same document,
- copy and paste a reference or quote from one screen to an article on the other,
- have a customer's contract open on one screen while composing an email to that client,
- or, keep up with sports scores while checking email.
A Microsoft study claims productivity increases of 9 to 50%. I don't know if I am working more efficiently but many tasks do seem to be easier.
Having two, or more, monitors is nothing new. Check out this link, this is a friends set up from 2004. You could enjoy the benefits of multiple monitors by getting one large monitor, but really large monitors are still fairly expensive. I got my second 22" LCD monitor from Target.com the day before Thanksgiving for about $170.00.
Are you constantly minimizing - maximizing windows or shuffling between tabs? Have you tried or thought about trying multiple monitors?
Posted by Bob Gatton at 7:06 AM | Comments (4)
