The Service Behind the Magic App
MagicApp is the app released by MagicJack for iOS and Android mobile devices. Some years back, MagicJack came on the market along with the VoIP wave and offered free phone calls to any number in the United States in Canada using a pen drive-like device plugged into your computer and your Internet modem or router to work. Now, they have a new device called MagicJack Express that does not need a computer, which works similarly to Ooma. This app is the extension of that service on mobile services, and it is a bold business move for them.
Installation and Interface
You can download and install the app for free on your device, provided it runs iOS or Android in their latest versions. Installing the app is easy and straightforward. The Interface is clean and straightforward with tabs for contacts, dialing, recent calls and messages. The contact list synchronizes automatically with the contacts on your phone, automatically finding any other MagicJack users. The interface is particularly slow, especially when loading. The app is not only quite bulky when loaded and ran, but it also consumes a higher amount of battery juice, even when not running.
The Cost
The app is free to download and use. You even get a free Magic Number, which is a special number that starts and ends with an asterisk. You can use the number to make and receive calls to and from other MagicApp and MagicJack users. MagicApp allows you to make unlimited free calls to the US and Canada. The calls we made, even from outside of the US, are clear and crisp. Of course, to be able to make these calls, you need to use your Wi-Fi connection or mobile data plan. The calls you make to other MagicApp and MagicJack users wherever they are all around the world are also free. This is a feature that runs common among VoIP calling apps for smartphones and computers. If you have a MagicJack device and run the app on your smartphone, both devices will ring at the same time upon an incoming call. You can also make paid calls for other numbers worldwide, at cheaper rates compared to the prohibitive cost of traditional telephony. However, in the VoIP market, MagicApp’s rates aren’t the best. For instance, France and the UK carry a cost of around 10 cents per minute and are too expensive compared to what other services offer. There is also a premium plan, which costs around $10 a year. This plan allows you to obtain a US number that you can use with your app. You can also choose to port any number of your choice to the service. This way, when you call using the app, you appear as yourself in your correspondent’s phone and not an unknown number. You can allow other people to call you for free on your MagicApp number over traditional lines. The premium plan also gets you unlimited text messaging to any US number and you get some added features such as caller ID, call forwarding and some others.
Bottom Line
MagicApp is a nice app, well designed, and has reliable service. Should you install it on your mobile device? Not if you don’t live in the US or Canada, or if you make numerous international calls. The cheap calls are not the cheapest on the market, the app consumes battery and resources, and competitors like WhatsApp and Skype are way forward in terms of the availability of contacts and number of users.
