Travel gadget.
WHAT: A phone jack for your computer that lets you plug in a standard phone and make low-cost calls.
AIMED AT: Travellers with laptops who want to make cheap calls from the road.
HOW MUCH: $20 for the jack, plus $20 a year for service.
BUT DOES IT WORK?
Between pricey penalties for exceeding mobile phone minutes to absurd hotel telephone charges, calling from the road costs too much. Travelers with laptops and broadband can make Internet calls, but those pay-per-minute rates add up.
MagicJack changes the game with a flat-rate price so low it looks like a misprint: $20 per year - not per month, per year - for unlimited calls to the United States and Canada from anywhere in the world.
Getting started costs $40, which includes the first year of service and a small device that plugs into a USB port. The device has a telephone jack that lets you use a standard phone, including cordless ones (you also can opt to use a headphone).