After 2 1/2 years, Jott has dropped the beta and announced that all users must log in and choose a plan. Here’s a snapshot of offerings:

Jott’s by-line is “turn your words into action”. You register for an account on-line using your cell phone number. Set your account preferences (do I want audio, written or both reminders and where do I want them), and you’re ready to go. Call the Jott phone number and an automated voice will ask you pertinent questions. Then some mystery person transcribes your words and gets it back to you. It’s amazingly accurate.

If you subscribe to one of the premium plans, you can utilize their new ‘Jott for Outlook’ feature. This download will install software in Outlook. Cool and useful things it will do:

• Call in a calendar appointment-Jott will guide you through the information needed and it’ll be on your calendar when you get back to the office
• Dictate an email and it’ll be waiting for you in your draft folder. Say you just finished one appointment and are dashing to the next. Call Jott and dictate a follow-up email.
• Add something to your tasks list

Another new feature (free), is called “Jott Express“. If you want Jott on your desktop, download and put the app on your desktop. It syncs with your on-line Jott account.

I prefer to put Jott on my iGoogle page and view my reminders from there. Jott also has an iPhone & Blackberry app to keep the road warriors organized.

We’ve been enjoying a plethora of free products on the web the last few years. We all scratch our heads and ask each other, “how can this be free?” I think we all knew the day would come when we’d have to pony up for using these products, which is only fair. It’s great that Jott still has a free version of their product (ad supported). What are some other web apps you’ve used that were formerly free, but now are fee-based?

I blogged about Jott in May. This is a free service (how do they do that?) that is so feature rich, I’ve hardly scratched the surface. A brief refresher, Jott is a great way to remind yourself and others of upcoming appointments, birthdays, family obligations–you name it. Get yourself set up on-line with your preferences, set up groups to notify co-workers, family or friends of happenings. A feature I utilize is to set up a reminder for something that happens out in the future and I tell Jott to notify me the day of my appointment. Less chance of forgetting that way!

But today, we’re going to talk about the new iPhone app Jott developed. With the release of the new iPhone and the subsequent deluge of third party apps, this one caught my eye as being useful for a client of mine. I watched the short video and was convinced. Download and install the app from iTunes. To use, simply tap on-screen anywhere and begin to speak. Tap again when you’re finished (think there’s a 30 second limit). Then your reminder/message is sent to the clouds to be transcribed into text then back on your iPhone and in your web Jott account.

You can organize, prioritize and categorize your Jotts, i.e. business, personal, etc. When you complete a task, swipe it with your finger and a line goes through it and you’ve marked it off your list! For those of us who derive fulfillment with the pen and notebook system, this flourish gives a similar sense of satisfaction.

This is truly an elegant and cool application–not to mention, it’s actually both useful and safe to use while driving!

For you Blackberry users out there, there’s a Jott version for you too!

I’ve had my Jott account for probably a year or so now and haven’t utilized it as much as I probably could. I just visited the site to see what was new and they have some really cool stuff.

For instance, I just added Jott to my iGoogle page – if you don’t have one of those, they are super easy to set up. When I visited Jott, I looked at all the web services added to make your life simpler and decided to start by adding Jott to my iGoogle page. One click and a login to my iGoogle page was all it took. You immediately see a 7-message incoming and outgoing history of your Jott messages. You can check out all the offerings here.

Now, instead of going to the Jott site, I can send a message right from my iGoogle page. Having it there saves me time and reminds me to use this great, free service. Give it a try!

For those of us who have difficulty remembering to be somewhere, Jott can help! After you’re registered, you can simply call the Jott number (1-866-JOTT-123) and when asked, say, “reminder”. Then you’ll be asked the day and time you want to be reminded. You’ll be asked HOW you want to be reminded, (on your phone or email). Then you’ll be asked WHAT you want to be reminded of and that’s it! Jott will notify you by e-mail, text message, or both.

Creating and Managing Your Reminders On-line:

When logged into your account at jott.com:

1. Click on the “Reminder Bell” icon next to the jott you want to be reminded about.
2. In the dialog, you can quickly select a short-time (Tomorrow, This Weekend, Next Week) or you can select a custom date and time through the fields below.
3. Select where you would like the reminder to be sent to by checking the box next to your email and/or phone number.
4. Click “Save” and you’re done!

Your reminders will now have an orange “lighted” bell icon instead of a brown bell. You can also select “Reminders” from the panel on the left underneath your inbox.

You say you’re too busy to set up a Jott account and put these reminders in??? Turn it over to your VA (virtual assistant). You can check out how a VA can help you here: http://assistu.com/client/client_why.shtml.

I heard about Jott on one of Leo Laporte’s (www.leo.am) tech podcasts recently and decided to try it out. It’s insanely simple to set up and completely free (still in beta testing). Go to www.jott.com and fill out a short registration form. Program their toll-free number in your cell phone or home phone and you’re ready. When you’re out and about, simply call the number and Jott asks you who you want to Jott – you then have up to 30 seconds to record your message.

Setup is simple with the ability to import your Yahoo, Google, Outlook and other address books–so no data entry! You’ll have the ability to set up groups as well as individuals and designate whether to have your message go to their e-mail, text to their phone or both. If you’re at your computer, log in to your account and Jott someone from within the web application.

Use Jott – it could make your life much easier!