The New MagicJack for Cell Phones:
MagicJack, the company behind the Internet calling device that works with analog desk phones, introduced a new gadget that essentially acts as a GSM femtocell that bypasses carriers, letting users make VoIP calls with their mobile phones, on any band, including locked phones and the Apple iPhone.
The company behind the MagicJack, has made a new version of the device that allows free calls from cell phones in the home to the US and Canada.
The device is, in essence, a very small cellular tower for the home.
The size of a deck of cards, it plugs into a PC, which needs a broadband Internet connection. The device then detects when a compatible cell phone comes within 8 feet, and places a call to it. The user enters a short code on the phone. The phone is then linked to the MagicJack, and as long as it's within range (YMax said it will cover a 3,000-square-foot home) MagicJack routes the call itself, over the Internet, rather than going through the carrier's cellular tower. No minutes are subtracted from the user's account with the carrier. Any extra fees for international calls are subtracted from the user's account with MagicJack, not the carrier.
The device will connect to any phone that uses the GSM standard, which in the U.S. includes phones from AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile USA. At a demonstration at CES, a visitor's phone with a T-Mobile account successfully placed and received calls through the magicJack. Most phones from Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. won't connect to the device.
The new MagicJack uses, without permission, radio frequencies for which cellular carriers have paid billions of dollars for exclusive licenses.
"If we move enough femtos out, I could mesh together 10 million end points into a WiFi network," the president of MagicJack said.
The new device allows GSM mobile phones to make calls through a femtocell connected to a user's computer (and a broadband connection). The call is routed via VoIP technology, and users can get a FULL YEAR of free calls to the U.S. and Canada for $20. (And, the first year is FREE.)