The femtoJack was a great idea in theory but the product never came to fruition. These reason was obvious but for those that don’t understand the need for a femtocell device the explanation is simple. A device became obsolete with the rapid spread of smartphone use, why sell people a device when a much cheaper smartphone app can do the exact same thing?
VocalTec LTD, the company behind the magicJack, will soon be unveiling a new product tagged the femtoJack. Although there has been no official announcement from the company our sources say that it will be announced during the first quarter of 2010. Our sources even mention magic Jack CEO Dan Barislow speaking about the product on several occasions without giving it a name while a representative from its sister company has actually referred to it as the femtoJack.
So what is the femtoJack you might ask?
Well, the femtoJack is a small USB device that is used to make calls from your home over a VoIP network.
Sounds just like the magic Jack doesn’t it?
Well it is just like the magic Jack but there is one catch. Instead of using a traditional phone with the femtoJack you will use your cell phone and you will use it wirelessly. Yep, that’s right. A USB device that gives you unlimited VoIP minutes while in range of it no wires, phone jacks, or cords required.
The femto Jack is expected to look just like the magic Jack (only slightly bigger) and be very cheap (equal to or only slightly more expensive than magic Jack). Like it’s predecessor the magic Jack, it is expected to come with unlimited local and long distance calling to anywhere in the U.S. or Canada for one small yearly fee.
The technology behind the femtoJack is simple. It uses femtocell technology which means that it uses radio frequencies to transmit your call wirelessly through your broadband Internet connection, across magic Jack’s dedicated VoIP network and eventually to the person you are making the call to.
One of the added benefits of the femtoJack is it’s ability to work as a cell phone signal booster. If you are unable to get cell phone service within your home all you have to do is setup the femtoJack and you will instantly have your own mini cellular tower if you will.
Now, technically speaking it won’t be a cell tower but it will serve nearly the same purpose. With the femtoJack you don’t need to have an actual cell phone signal, just a cell phone. It is unclear at this point but we believe that a cell phone that isn’t activate with a cell carrier will even be able to be used with the femto Jack. Early reports also indicate that the femtoJack will be powerful enough that you will be able to get service from anywhere in your own home, of course that’s assuming you don’t have a 10,000 sq. ft. home.
It is believed that the femtoJack will work with nearly all carriers at some point but at first it is expected to work exclusively for GSM standard phones which include anything from AT&T or T-Mobile. The only questions that remain are can they negotiate seamless handoff agreements with carriers so when you leave your home you don’t drop the phone call is whether it is legal for the femtoJack to use the wireless spectrum that mobile carriers have paid billions to possess. Early indications point to it being okay since wireless spectrum licenses don’t extend into the home.
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