Randall Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 You mean putting speakers in your ears and turning the volume way up can cause hearing loss? Apple sued over iPod hearing loss By Associated Press Friday, February 3, 2006 A Louisiana man claims in a lawsuit that Apple’s iPod music player can cause hearing loss in people who use it. Apple has sold more than 42 million of the devices since they went on sale in 2001, including 14 million in the fourth quarter last year. The devices can produce sounds of more than 115 decibels, a volume that can damage the hearing of anyone exposed to it for more than 28 seconds per day, according to the complaint. The iPod players are “inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss,” according to the complaint, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in San Jose, Calif., on behalf of John Kiel Patterson of Louisiana. The suit, which Patterson wants certified as a class-action, seeks compensation for unspecified damages and upgrades that will make iPods safer. Patterson’s suit said he bought an iPod last year, but does not specify whether he suffered hearing loss. Patterson does not know if the device has damaged his hearing, said his attorney, Steve W. Berman, of Seattle. But that’s beside the point of the lawsuit, which takes issue with the potential the iPod has to cause irreparable hearing loss, Berman said. An Apple Computer Inc. spokeswoman, Kristin Huguet, declined to comment. Although the iPod is more popular than other types of portable music players, its ability to cause noise-induced hearing loss isn’t any higher, experts said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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