Can you port in an existing phone number to a Magic Jack account to keep an existing number and not have to notify all of your contacts of a new number? You can with Vonage. I just keep my Vonage modem/phone in Cancun to keep in touch with the US but a buddy of mine ported his home number to Vonage, killed his local phone service, and just takes his modem with him wherever he goes and, phone wise, it's as if he is in NC. I ported a business number to my Vonage and killed the corresponding local service while preserving a long time, easy to remember number. I pay Vonage a year in advance and get 2 free months. It's not free but it is worth what I pay, for me anyway. I have heard a lot of good things about MJ and may give it a try if I can port another good number to it. Thanks
.....And what happens if you (later) discontinue your phone service in the US, after signing up with MJ ????
Rick - if that ? is for me my answer is, "nothing, I suppose." I could always drop (Vonage in my case) the service I ported my number too, and port it to a cell phone, a new VOIP service or back to a local service provider. The only thing that could go wrong, and this concerned me when the anti-trust thing with Vonage was going on, was that if they folded their tent, I would not be able to port my number anywhere as it would be lost in cyber space.
I just got the MJ in today , plugged it in and it I am able to receive calls. I think I have to wait 2 more hours for the MJ to activate for outgoing calls/voicemail. so , I have my verizon broadband card plugged in and my MJ device and Im totally mobile. (in the US) .when I go back to Cancun - just plug in and not worry about keeping in touch In the MJ directions , it encourages you to bring the device with you when you go out of the country. it gives you a cool little control panel that pops up on your screen when you receive calls or make calls. plus it has caller ID the device is so small , very convinient so far I have only paid , I think $39 - I can't remember.
TJ, yeah I was wondering what will happen to your friend who discontinued his home phone service, because in about 6 months, the phone company will give that nummber to someone else. I don't understand why you have to have a home phone at all w/ MJ. Same applies to Vonage, I would think....and I'm looking for a decent phone service to call the US from time to time, as I will always have some business there.
OK Rick, now I understand your question. When I ported a business number to Vonage, that means that my old work number is now my Vonage number. Vonage now "owns" that number unless I want to port it from them to another company. And that is how my friend in NC did it. His old home phone is now his Vonage number and it will not and cannot be issued to anyone else. I am talking about the area code and the number which of course cannot be duplicated to more than one account, no matter whose account it is. I hope this makes sense. The phone company does not own the number. On the other hand, were someone to simply cancel their service with their local phone carrier, you are right. After 6 months the number can be assigned to another customer. The only downside that I see, downsides really, is that Vonage would go out of business and the numbers would be lost forever, or I suppose another company could buy their assets, including their numbers, at a bankruptcy sale. The main, more realistic problem, if it is a problem, is that my business and my friend as an individual, no longer show up on anyone's directory assistance. Cheers, T.J.
