Sometimes a totally game-changing service or product appears within a particular industry. It can come from a large company, a multinational, or even a small one-man operation. I have been using MagicJack.com’s MagicJack VOIP service for several months. I initially started using it as a means of reducing my home office costs, but I really found that it had a much broader appeal to me, especially internationally.

In doing my research to reduce telecom costs, I checked a number of phone service companies, including AT&T, Comcast, and several VOIP service providers, including Vonage. What I found was quite revealing, especially the cost of the service when making and receiving international calls to different countries. It’s all over the map!

But let me digress a bit. I discovered MagicJack when I was having dinner with an old colleague. He bought a Magic Jack because he traveled frequently within the US and internationally. He objected to paying the outrageous rates that hotels charge just to make a local phone call. He had heard of MagicJack.com and decided to give it a spin. On a trip to India, he decided to give it a try and was impressed by the fact that he could call the US again … FREE!

MagicJack.com DOES NOT restrict the use of your device for calls abroad. So imagine a world traveler calling home frequently. Plug this little device into your laptop’s USB port and hotel phone and now you’re calling the US for literally nothing. There is a $ 19 a year charge, but that’s it! Let’s take this idea one step further. Suppose you have friends or family who live outside of the US Choose a country. Buy a MagicJack, give it a phone number, and ship it. They now have a valid phone number in the US and can make and receive calls for the same $ 19 a year, UNLIMITED. Talk nonstop!

Now, let’s get REALLY creative. I have a virtual assistant who lives in the Philippines. I could have set it up with a T1 line or an international calling card … or, I suppose, any number of options. I could also have signed up with Vonage and allowed you to use the virtual phone version of their service. The cost of Vonage? … $ 24 / month. Compare that to just $ 19 / YEAR with MagicJack.com.

Now, to be fair, Vonage has a huge infrastructure to pay for. They even have a customer service center in case you need help. MagicJack.com does not have a call center yet. You do everything through chat sessions. Their chat sessions are very fast and I have had no problem immediately contacting one of their support staff.

I have many more ideas on how to use MagicJack. But, I don’t want to spill all the beans, lest I get cut up as a power user (smile). In any case, I think the folks at MagicJack.com have created a truly revolutionary product and signed up for their 5-year discounted service because I love saving money.