Email and Data Capture without a
computer.
About MailBug
MailBug for Small Business
MailBug Questions and Answers
Download
MailBug Brochure
MailBug for Seniors
MailBug Online
Store
EMAIL
WITHOUT A COMPUTER!
Helpful links and frequently asked questions about MailBug
Order a MailBug: online store
or fax-based
order form
Access webmail: mailbug.com
webmail or emailamerica.us
webmail
Find local access numbers
Download a copy of the MailBug User's Guide
See technical reviews of MailBug from
the experts
Does
Landel MailBug email service really work?
Landel invented non-computer technology for email and has been using
its proven technology to satisfy email customers in the US and around
the world for years.
Is it
“real” email service even though there’s no computer
required?
You don’t need your computer to send email any more than you need
your computer to make a phone call. MailBug email is every bit as
real as computer-based email, except it’s far easier. You
can send and receive email to and from any valid email address,
anywhere. Send email to AOL; get email from MSN; send email to
the office; or whatever you need. Using MailBug for email is like using
a computer for email, except without a computer.
Does the
recipient have to use a MailBug in order to receive an email from a
MailBug?
No. MailBug can send email to, and receive email from, any email
account on the Internet.
You can send email to anyone with an Internet email address -- this
includes anyone at AOL, Hotmail, Yahoo, and others. It includes
home
email addresses and work email addresses; email addresses in the
US
and email addresses in Europe or Asia (or anywhere); email addresses
that go to computers, or cell phones, or pagers, or PDAs. And of
course, you can send email to other MailBugs, too. In short, use
MailBug to send email to any valid email address.
Can
MailBug send email to more than one person at a time?
Of course it can, we know you want to keep in touch with many family
members at the same time. The MailBug Email Address Book can also be
used to store frequently used group addresses.
Can MailBug receive large email
messages or only tiny little ones?
MailBug is great for sending small messages on a whim. But you aren't
limited just to short messages. MailBug can receive a very
long email of up to 16,000 characters, equivalent to about four
typewritten 8 1/2" x 11" pages of text. Any
characters in
excess of this amount will be truncated so that the message can be
sent.
If you use the webmail option, the original message will be available
on the web-mailbox in its complete, unabridged form.
Can I
print my email?
You can print your email. Since MailBug is not a computer,
however,
you cannot connect it to a standard computer printer. Instead, MailBug
prints to standard fax machines. Click here to see why that makes
sense and for more detail on printing to a fax
machine. You can also simply forward the message to an office
or other
location where a printer is available. Or, if you choose to use the
webmail option, you can print your email from any Internet connected
computer with access to a printer (at work or at the library).
What
happens to email attachments?
MailBug
isn’t made to display all computer-based attachments, like
spreadsheets or photos. That’s
one way we ensure that MailBug is easier to afford and easier to use
than a computer. If you want computer-based attachments, however,
your
mailbug.com email account can also be accessed by a computer so you can
archive, print, or view attachments. You can use standard POP
mail
commands in your email software, or you can access email by using
MailBug webmail. Or if you prefer, Landel can arrange to send
copies
of all your incoming mail to another address.
MailBug will, however, display PDF file attachments. When a MailBug
receives a PDF file, the text portion of the file is converted into
text and delivered as a simple email. Through this process, MailBug can
easily receive any computer-based attachment that a sender might want
to send, whether it started out as a presentation, a spreadsheet, a
word processing file, an invoice, or any other computer-based file. As
long as the original file is converted and sent as a PDF, then MailBug
will display the text portion of the file attachment. MailBug uses a
text-based screen, so the graphic portion of the PDF attachments
will be omitted. This function is useful for both
consumer and small business customers of MailBug, but is especially
useful to those who employ MailBug within their small businesses to
enable email without computers or computer training or computer hassles.
For customers who cannot create PDF attachments, MailBug also converts
HTML into text. If a sender wants to email a word processing document,
for example, MailBug will not be able to display the word processing
document in a word document format. If the sender saves the document in
HTML (or "as a webpage") prior to sending by email, however, MailBug
will display the text portion of the attached HTML document. This
also applies to presentations, spreadsheets, or any other document
saved as HTML.
Can I
email photos to a MailBug?
If you are considering a
MailBug for easy everyday communications with someone in your family,
but want to send photo attachments occasionally, then MailBug may still
be a great option for you. Photo attachments can be viewed using
a
computer and the webmail option, of course, but Landel recommends that
you simply use the MailBug for everyday easy communication, and send
photos on a DVD rather than send photos by email. Why? Because DVD
players are easy to use and inexpensive. The recipient of
your photos won't have to
hassle with a computer and virus protection
and all the trappings required to receive photos by email.
A DVD can hold a great
deal of still and motion photos, far more than would be possible or
practical as email attachments. Most important, the recipient of your
photos can enjoy them quickly and easily on their TVs from the comfort
of their living room.
Another great option for photos is a MailBug for everyday email
conversation along with a digital picture frame. That way, sharing
photos is as easy as sending a thumb drive or a memory card for
insertion into the frame, while email remains quick and easy and
trouble free.
How much does
MailBug email service cost?
When you buy a Landel MailBug you get Standard Email Service from
Landel for only $9.95 per month, charged to your credit card on a
monthly, quarterly, or annual basis. That’s less than
half of what the big Internet service companies charge. When you
choose any annual option,
you also get the 12th month absolutely FREE. There is no long
service contract, no commitment, no risk – just an easy and
affordable way to discover how easy email should really be.
A toll free access charge of $2.95 per month may apply in some areas,
and where applicable it is billed along with the email service
(monthly, quarterly, or annually). This toll free access charge
is normally not required, because Landel provides local access covering
thousands of locations throughout the USA. In the few cases where
the toll free access is required, it’s a great way to ensure that
simple and reliable email service is available to anyone in the US,
anywhere from Alaska to Wyoming. Click here to see a list of
local access numbers to find out if access is available from your
location.
How will
I be billed for service?
MailBug
customers have the option of paying for service monthly, quarterly, or
annually, when paying by credit card. There is no service
contract
required. When you choose annual service, you get your 12th month of
email service FREE. You select which service plan you prefer at the
time you register your MailBug to setup service. The billing and
address information you provide is used for billing you in future
months.
Can I
access the Web using MailBug?
While MailBug is an email and information device, it does not
contain a general purpose browser and cannot be used for general web
access.
As part of your email service, however, your MailBug
will provide online access to News, Stock
Quotes, Weather, and other information. Click here to see a sample.
Is MailBug
vulnerable to email viruses and Internet worms?
If
you are using a computer for email, look out. Whether it's
Blaster, I
Love You, Melissa, Michaelangelo, SoBig, Klez, or any of the others
you've heard about on the evening news, there is always another nasty
virus or Internet worm lurking around the corner. They disguise
themselves as emails from your friends. They send themselves to
others
while pretending to be you. They hide in your computer ready to
take
it over or deliver your confidential information to some anonymous
website somewhere. Or they just make your computer crash. Again.
But
you don't have to put up with all that. Email isn't vulnerable to
a
computer virus or Internet worm... computers are. So using Landel
MailBug as your email service frees you from all these hassles and
worries. The MailBug email terminal isn't a computer, and so it
can't
get a virus. It can't send one to your friends or family either.
So if
you're using a computer for email, Landel recommends that you update
your virus software regularly. But if you want simple to use
email
that isn't vulnerable to hackers, get MailBug email service from
Landel. Then when you see new virus alerts on the evening news,
you
can rest easy while everyone else stays up half the night trying to get
control of their computers back.
For information on the latest virus and other threats that computer
email customers have to worry about, and which MailBug email customers
don't, click here.
Can
MailBug be used to access chat rooms and porn sites?
No. MailBug email service is just for email service, plain and
simple. You're a concerned parent and you want easy access for
your household to email. But you don't want to introduce access
to undesirable parts of the Internet in the process. You don't
want your kids to "chat" with strangers, and you don't want easy access
to porn or gambling or other unwanted websites in your
home. MailBug email service takes advantage of the Internet
for sending and receiving email, but it does not make your household
vulnerable to the portions of the Internet you don't want.
What
about "Spam"?
Landel
does not sell its customer list and does everything it can to prevent
abusers from sending unsolicited commercial email (sometimes called
"Spam"). Filters are in place for all customeres, and Landel
Support can even adjust the strength of spam filters up or down to suit
individual customer needs.
If you want your email to be strictly private, Landel Support can also
set up a "white list" of approved email senders and have your MailBug
discard all other unapproved mail.
Do I need
a separate phone line for the MailBug?
You
don't need a separate phone line. MailBug is designed to use your
ordinary phone line - the kind found in almost all homes. It
intelligently shares a phone line with other devices or your regular
telephone. It senses when the line is in use and places a call to send
or retrieve email only when no one is using the phone. All reading and
composing of messages is done while off-line, never tying up the phone
line. (MailBug assumes that your phone line supports "touch-tone"
dialing. It can, however, work on rotary or pulse dialing lines.)
Is the
MailBug compatible with my answering machine, fax, or other telephone
equipment?
In
most cases, MailBug can share a telephone line with any other type of
telephone equipment you might have. MailBug never actually answers the
phone, it only places outgoing calls, and then only when the line is
not in use. Thus there is never a conflict with other devices connected
to the same line. To share a telephone jack with an answering machine,
simply connect the answering machine to the second jack on the back of
the MailBug.
Will
MailBug interfere with telephone calls?
No,
MailBug is smart enough to never interfere with a ringing phone line,
or when the phone line is already in use. It senses when the line is
not in use before attempting to send or check for email messages.
Does the
MailBug have to connect to a computer?
There is no need to connect MailBug to a computer. It only requires a
connection to your telephone line.
But if I
want to, even though I don't have to, can I use my MailBug in
combination with a computer?
You're tired of seeing the emails about the time change for the soccer
game after the games are already over, aren't you? You don't log
in with your computer to get email messages like these because you
don't expect them. You don't know they are there. Do you wish you
could get them automatically without having to boot up and log in with
your computer? MailBug can help. It works very nicely with
your computer and your existing Internet connection to bring a new
level of convenience to email. If you choose to use it that way,
you can think of your MailBug as your email assistant. It will
automatically download all your email so that you can deal with the
simple ones without messing around with the computer. It will
show you the ones you need to see before they get too old to be
useful. Then, whenever it's convenient for you to log on with
your computer, you can download all your email into your hard drive
archives, print them, or work with computer based attachments.
You still keep all the function that you are used to having from your
computer and your existing Internet connection, but you will never have
to log on again just to see if you have email. MailBug makes
email so easy you'll find yourself exchanging email effortlessly every
single day, rather than just once in a while when you find time to
launch your computer. Look in your User’s Guide for details
for the simple setup, or contact us. Use the following for the
settings in your computer
-- mail host: pop.mailbug.com
(incoming) and mail.mailbug.com (outgoing – use password
authentication for outgoing)
-- user name (generally, this is your full
mailbug.com email address (some software may require only the user name)
-- password (your regular mailbug.com password as
used in your MailBug setup)
Can I use
MailBug at my office?
Sure. It's a great solution for small businesses that want email at
site locations but don't have IT staff and don't want to support
computers and software. MailBug requires a standard analog phone
line, the same as the one found in most homes. This is also true for
most computer dial-up modems or fax machines. Some office telephone
systems use PBX or digital systems which require special telephone
sets. If your office uses this type of phone system, one possible
solution is to have MailBug share the telephone line with your fax
machine (which is often an analog line). Since MailBug is only online
for a few minutes each day, it should not impact fax users.
Can I use my
own ISP with MailBug?
MailBug is designed to connect to Landel's email service. Our customer
service staff can easily set your MailBug service up to forward copies
of your inbound mailbug.com email to another email account at another
provider if you wish. You can also use this same option to have
copies of your inbound mailbug.com email sent to your office
address. Once you get your MailBug, simply use your mailbug.com
email account as your primary email address, and your incoming mail
will be available to you from your MailBug and through your other
ISP. In some cases, you can use MailBug to retrieve email
directly from other POP3 mail hosts, although many of the larger
providers (like AOL) do not adhere to POP3 standards.
Does MailBug
have an email address book?
Yes, MailBug allows you to store up to 100 email addresses.
How many
"users" will MailBug support?
MailBug is designed to be a personal messaging device, and supports a
single mailbox. Any number of people can share a MailBug, but they will
share the same email address.
Can you
change your email address once you've already registered?
Yes, you may change your email address, however you need to contact
someone in our Customer Support department to make this change.
How
frequently does MailBug check email?
How often MailBug checks for new email is variable, depending upon how
often you send and receive email. If you are a frequent email user,
MailBug will check more often than if you are an infrequent email user.
It will normally check at least once per day, and sometime every few
hours, depending upon usage patterns. You can always initiate a manual
check for messages at any time. See your owner's guide for more
information.
How long
does it take to send/receive an average email?
From the time you press SEND (or CONNECT) most email messages will be
sent (or received) in under a minute.
What is
the maximum number of email messages a customer can send or receive
each month?
The MailBug service from Landel does not limit the number of email
messages you may send or receive. You may send or receive as many as
you like.
Can
MailBug save emails on disk?
MailBug does not have disk storage. The messages are stored in
non-volatile electronic memory.
Does
MailBug support Caller ID?
Yes. If you subscribe to Caller ID service from your phone company,
then MailBug will automatically sense this service and capture and
display incoming call information, including number and name if it is
sent. If the number matches an entry in MailBug's phonebook, that
matching name will be automatically displayed next to the caller's
number. If you do not subscribe to Caller ID, then the CALLS button
will not appear.
Is MailBug
portable?
The MailBug is portable because it is small and light, and because it
can be used from most telephone lines anywhere in the United States. It
is not, however, considered a mobile device since it requires AC power
and a connection to a regular telephone line. Many hotel rooms offer a
standard phone jack that will work just fine with MailBug, making it a
great travel companion.
Is the
MailBug available for use outside of the United States?
While MailBug service is available throughout the USA and Canada,
service in other countries is not available at this time. However, some
customers have elected to use their MailBugs from outside the USA and
Canada, allowing MailBug to place an international call to reach our
email servers here in the USA. While this may be an acceptable
arrangement for some users (since the calls to send and receive email
are generally very short in duration, especially compared to voice
calls), the toll charges associated with these calls may be prohibitive
for most users. Furthermore, such international users must insure that
120 volt power is available for use with the AC adapter that comes with
MailBug. Any other voltage may cause permanent damage to the unit.
When away
from home for several days, does MailBug have to be disconnected?
No. MailBug is designed to be continuously powered up and always ready
for use. If you must disconnect it, however, no information will be
lost.
