As-Seen-on-TV MagicJack Actually Works as Advertised

Walter Mossberg is as surprised as anyone to say it, but MagicJack actually works. If you haven’t seen its frequent, hard-sell TV ads, the little USB device hooks your computer to a traditional phone, allowing you to make unlimited calls over the Internet at a nigh-unbelievable rate. The first year of calls comes free with the $40 device, and each year thereafter is just $20.

That covers calls to or from any US or Canadian phone; international minutes cost extra. The call quality isn’t perfect, but it ain’t bad—“Most of the people I called said they couldn’t tell I wasn’t on a regular call,” Mossberg writes in the Wall Street Journal. The only real drawbacks are that you can’t use your old phone number, and need to keep your computer on to get calls. (More Walt Mossberg stories.)