Ooma vs. magicJack

Features

Features are also a big deciding factor when you’re looking at home VoIP services. With Ooma’s Basic service, you get the standard feature set you would expect: voicemail, caller-ID, 911 services, among others.Ooma also offers Premier Service for just $9.99/month that includes an expanded set of features, including 3-way calling, voicemail forwarding, and transferring your existing number. Both Basic and Premier customers can enjoy Ooma’s free calling app for iOS and Android, which lets you recieve calls and messages on the go.

While magicJack does provide many of the same features as Ooma, one thing that does differentiate the service tiers is smart home integration. Unlike magicJack, Ooma can connect to many smart home devices and solutions with Ooma Home. There are several smart home functions you can enjoy with Ooma, including:

• Initiating phone calls through Amazon Alexa
• Dialing your local 911 dispatcher, even when you are not at home.
• Receiving notifications on your mobile phone when smart home security devices are triggered, such as a smoke alarm or water sensor.

More feature comparisons

Ooma Premier customers can also enjoy powerful call blocking tools to protect against telemarketers, spammers, robocalls, anonymous callers and custom numbers. Call blocking is more limited with magicJack. While you can block specific numbers, protection against telemarketers is limited to signing up for the national Do Not Call Registry.

magicJack comes with equipped with a number of popular features that Ooma also offers, like the ability to receive phone calls on your smartphone, call waiting, voicemail, call forwarding, and conferencing. However, compared to the advanced home VoIP features that Ooma has, magicJack is more of a standard, run-of-the-mill option.

Customer Service and Quality

Ooma has a consistent high ranking with homeowners when it comes to call quality and customer service. In addition to stellar customer reviews, PCMag named Ooma an Editor’s Choice, citing a no-hassle setup, low cost, clear voice quality, and easy-to-use web interface.

While magicJack offers competitive costs and plans, PCMag gave magicJack only two stars, specifically citing poor customer service and excessive upselling. For tech support, it was the lowest ranked service, as the company only offers support via chat or email with no phone support.

In contrast, Ooma is one of the few home VoIP providers that offers 24/7 chat support and phone support from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Friday, and from noon to 9 p.m. on weekends. Personnel also keep customers informed of any service disruptions, and works to solve any issues quickly and painlessly.

Although Ooma and magicJack provide low-cost home VoIP service, magicJack’s poor customer service makes Ooma the winner when comparing the two companies. CNET cited the service with magicJack as a “tradeoff between price and reliability.” Although Ooma may require you to purchase equipment upfront, in the long run, you will get a better value in the long run with great customer service along the way.