Lawsuit claims iPod can cause hearing loss

Iria · Feb 2, 2006, 07:11 PM

San Jose (CA) - Playing music at an increased volume can cause damage to your ears. Common sense to most, but the topic recently surfaced more prominently in the light of experts warning about potential hearing loss and the involvement of the iPod. In a case of "You probably saw this coming," a suit seeks damages for hearing loss and upgrades to future players to prevent them from damaging hearing.

The suit was filed by iPod owner John Kiel Patterson, who says that the iPod causes hearing loss in those who use it. "[The players are] inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss" says the complaint.
____________
Read More / Source: TG Daily

nohbody · Feb 2, 2006, 07:52 PM

I am simply stunned at the stupidity of some people

Next the iPod will be blamed for global warming and locust plagues .... sheesh

OmegaRED · Feb 2, 2006, 08:43 PM

Apple needs to take the bastard to court and bankrupt him to prevent more idiots from making stupid lawsuits.

aerospace · Feb 2, 2006, 08:48 PM

Umm, that's like as if I took my car and ran it through a crowd of people and then sued the manufacturer of the car for that it did not come with a safeguard for stopping me from doing that. What a f*cktard dickwad.

germanjulian · Feb 2, 2006, 09:05 PM

totally agree...
idiots... people like that ruin businesses and the economy

Lakevren · Feb 2, 2006, 09:58 PM

This is a case where I feel like I will actually inflict hearing loss to John Kiel Patterson.

Stick pencil into ear and shove. Hard.

Although that might cause more than just hearing loss.

Customgamer1 · Feb 2, 2006, 10:05 PM

Well you can add this to the list of the most retarded cases of all time.

Just like the Mcdonald pointless case about how people say they are getting fat from them?? well if you don't eat there you will not get fat

same with the ipod don't turn it up so much = no hearing loss....

Customgamer1 · Feb 2, 2006, 10:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aerospace

Umm, that's like as if I took my car and ran it through a crowd of people and then sued the manufacturer of the car for that it did not come with a safeguard for stopping me from doing that. What a f*cktard dickwad.

You know in this day and age if no one has tried that yet it's going to happen.

Sandok · Feb 2, 2006, 10:07 PM

Meh the iPods in europe are already limited...

Zardon · Feb 2, 2006, 10:20 PM

its beyond idiotic and the sad thing is, this is becoming more and more frequent in the computer and technology sector.

I mean, I could lose my hearing if I put my ears to the pipes of my yamaha R1, but would I do that or would I sue Yamaha?

The sooner judges reverse these decisions and fine the people filling the lawsuits the better.

Anyone heard of a volume control?

Babalou · Feb 2, 2006, 10:32 PM

I beleive the death penalty is in order to prevent idiots like that from breeding.

NUCLEARWINTER · Feb 2, 2006, 11:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Babalou

I beleive the death penalty is in order to prevent idiots like that from breeding.

nah, castration is the way to go. hit 'em where it hurts. cannot breed and they have to live with their stupidity/deafness. FFS it is a speaker.....that u put in ur ear!!!!

YAYitsAndrew · Feb 2, 2006, 11:43 PM

I think there's some merit here. I bet a lot of you play music from your headphones at a level that you deem acceptable, but is still detrimental to your hearing. This is a case of people not knowing what's good for them.

Apple (and others) may be providing a product that causes permanent damage to people's ears and not telling them (or not getting through to them) in an effective manner.

It may be that, for the safety of an entire generation, these things need to be sold with a lower max volume. We're not talking about one night at a concert or a club, We're talking about 7 days a week multi-hour damage to your hearing.

I don't know if a lawsuit is the way to go, but the hearing concern needs to be brought to people's attention.

Necrosis · Feb 3, 2006, 12:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YAYitsAndrew

I think there's some merit here. I bet a lot of you play music from your headphones at a level that you deem acceptable, but is still detrimental to your hearing. This is a case of people not knowing what's good for them.

Apple (and others) may be providing a product that causes permanent damage to people's ears and not telling them (or not getting through to them) in an effective manner.

It may be that, for the safety of an entire generation, these things need to be sold with a lower max volume. We're not talking about one night at a concert or a club, We're talking about 7 days a week multi-hour damage to your hearing.

I don't know if a lawsuit is the way to go, but the hearing concern needs to be brought to people's attention.

Yeah but people should really know though what it will do to their hearing. Good lord it's such a common sense issue.

niceguyrichy · Feb 3, 2006, 12:22 AM

you have to be really stupid to not realise that listening to loud music damages your hearing. I hated that the sony walkman's I was buying 10 years had that volume limiter thing in them, still hate them today.
It's just that we've allowed ourselves to get to the point where the individual isn't responsible for anything, it's all society's fault. Bullshit.

every goddamn music player ships with a magic button.
volume down

**dj_stick** · Feb 3, 2006, 12:25 AM

can someone say duhh?
ALL sources of music *can* cause hearing loss if you're not careful

the real problem is the dipshits that don't read the warnings in the manual provided with every form of audio device

OmegaRED · Feb 3, 2006, 12:31 AM

I think it would be cool if iPods has the "night mode" that many home theatre receivers and pc sound cards have that would limit spikes of high volume as long as it could be disabled.

Iria · Feb 3, 2006, 12:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Necrosis

Yeah but people should really know though what it will do to their hearing. Good lord it's such a common sense issue.

Well, then a lot of people are stupid.

If you read this article, you'll see this researcher found a lot of people he just casually stopped were listening at 110 - 120 dB.

Raptor · Feb 3, 2006, 12:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iria

San Jose (CA) - Playing music at an increased volume can cause damage to your ears. Common sense to most, but the topic recently surfaced more prominently in the light of experts warning about potential hearing loss and the involvement of the iPod. In a case of "You probably saw this coming," a suit seeks damages for hearing loss and upgrades to future players to prevent them from damaging hearing.

The suit was filed by iPod owner John Kiel Patterson, who says that the iPod causes hearing loss in those who use it. "[The players are] inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss" says the complaint.
____________
Read More / Source: TG Daily

This guy Patterson must be related to that jerkoff who sued NetFlix. I wonder if Mr. Patterson ever heard of a VOLUME CONTROL. Probably not

Dark Lord · Feb 3, 2006, 01:00 AM

im still waiting for some one to sue some one over the huge subwoofers people put in their cars. 2000watt systems being played inside a closed area like that will and do cause hearing loss. i honestly cant sit in my friends car when hes got it cranked, way to freaking loud for my tastes.

now if we have the windows open, and going down the highway, its not too bad.

**dj_stick** · Feb 3, 2006, 02:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaRED

I think it would be cool if iPods has the "night mode" that many home theatre receivers and pc sound cards have that would limit spikes of high volume as long as it could be disabled.

problem with alot of music today is that its compressed so much (audio terms, not mp3 style compression) that there is practically no difference between the softest and the loudest sound

it's just always loud

Sandok · Feb 3, 2006, 05:57 AM

The thing is some people wanna listen without having ANY background noise and thus on max... You gotta be an idiot if you think that won't hurt ur ears. My mom used to tell me and all and if ever, with my Ipod, I never ever go past 50%. Always loud enough

Stock earbuds mind you!

Babalou · Feb 3, 2006, 04:52 PM

Hmm.. I have it!!!!

I'm going to the next live concert, then after the concert when my ears are ringing,
I'll file a lawsuit against the band for playing at an excessive volume that caused damage to my hearing!

I'm kidding of course, but I see no difference between this retarded lawsuit, and the scenerio I just mentionned

**dj_stick** · Feb 3, 2006, 06:02 PM

IIRC earbus do more damage than headphones (around your ears) so i just use a pair of headphones at moderate volumes

Lakevren · Feb 4, 2006, 02:48 AM

Quote:

The Cupertino-based company ships a warning with each iPod that cautions "permanent hearing loss may occur if earphones or headphones are used at high volume."

Screw that, he has no case due to the warning. It proves as a disclaimer.

riles9262 · Feb 4, 2006, 05:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dj_stick

IIRC earbus do more damage than headphones (around your ears) so i just use a pair of headphones at moderate volumes

True true, and for me, my earbuds are noise reduction, so moderate volume is more than enough

As for the ipod lawsuit, this won't be the last. I'd like to see how many more pop up if he happens to weasle some money from the defense.

YAYitsAndrew · Feb 4, 2006, 02:20 PM

The difference between the concert and the earbuds is the earbuds are sustained. People have them in their ears all day, a concert is just one night every couple weeks.

Read this article, it explains how many people listen to headphones at very loud levels, equivalent to a concert, that can cause hearing damage after only a couple hours. Not too bad if you're going to a rock concert once in a while, but terrible if you're using your ipod to and from work every day.
http://www.startribune.com/789/story/150546.html

Saying "turning these earbuds up will hurt your hearing" isn't enough. They need to be better shielded from the outside noises so that people don't feel required to listen to their ipods at high volumes so much.

Why target apple? They have something like 80% market share for mp3s. You could almost stop this whole problem with one stone if you could somehow require them to lower the volume if it's loud for sustained periods or produce better earbuds/headphones.

SFOSOK · Feb 4, 2006, 09:45 PM

I think the thread should be changed to "Lawsuit Claims people are morons" or Lawsuit claims ipods cause morons"

Zelig · Feb 5, 2006, 06:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YAYitsAndrew

I think there's some merit here. I bet a lot of you play music from your headphones at a level that you deem acceptable, but is still detrimental to your hearing. This is a case of people not knowing what's good for them.

Apple (and others) may be providing a product that causes permanent damage to people's ears and not telling them (or not getting through to them) in an effective manner.

It may be that, for the safety of an entire generation, these things need to be sold with a lower max volume. We're not talking about one night at a concert or a club, We're talking about 7 days a week multi-hour damage to your hearing.

I don't know if a lawsuit is the way to go, but the hearing concern needs to be brought to people's attention.

I tend to be strongly opposed to most frivolous lawsuits, but this one does seem to have a point. Seeking damages from Apple doesn't seem like the way to go though, better user awareness and/or limited volume on future players ought to be far more useful.

**dj_stick** · Feb 5, 2006, 12:54 PM

i might have to start a research project on this, comparing the different output volumes to a safe level chart, compare earbuds to headphones and provide some advice on how to avoid hearing loss

Feb 2, 2006, 07:11 PM	#1
Iria DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 7,275 Rep Power: 89	Lawsuit claims iPod can cause hearing loss San Jose (CA) - Playing music at an increased volume can cause damage to your ears. Common sense to most, but the topic recently surfaced more prominently in the light of experts warning about potential hearing loss and the involvement of the iPod. In a case of "You probably saw this coming," a suit seeks damages for hearing loss and upgrades to future players to prevent them from damaging hearing. The suit was filed by iPod owner John Kiel Patterson, who says that the iPod causes hearing loss in those who use it. "[The players are] inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss" says the complaint. ____________ Read More / Source: TG Daily

Feb 2, 2006, 08:43 PM	#3
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,688 Rep Power: 173 System Specs	Apple needs to take the bastard to court and bankrupt him to prevent more idiots from making stupid lawsuits. __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Feb 2, 2006, 09:05 PM	#5
germanjulian Back in London Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: London Posts: 1,797 Rep Power: 0	totally agree... idiots... people like that ruin businesses and the economy __________________ /\|\ Asus P5W DH Deluxe, Intel C2D E6600, 2GB Corsair XMS2-6400C4 DDR2, E-VGA GeForce 7800 GT, Creative X-Fi Extreme Music, 500GB Seagate 7200.10 SATA, Lian Li PC-V1100 Aluminum Case Black, etc. http://germanjulian.com /\|\

Feb 2, 2006, 09:58 PM	#6
Lakevren MedicalEntropy Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: New Jersey Posts: 294 Rep Power: 0	This is a case where I feel like I will actually inflict hearing loss to John Kiel Patterson. Stick pencil into ear and shove. Hard. Although that might cause more than just hearing loss. __________________ [COLOR=darkorange][COLOR=SeaGreen]Opteron 170 @ 2500 MHZ (In Need of Better HSF)[/COLOR] [/COLOR] [COLOR=darkorange][COLOR=Yellow]DFI LanParty UT SLI-DR Expert[/COLOR] [/COLOR] [COLOR=red]HIS IceQ3 X1900XT @ 680/785 [COLOR=YellowGreen]Corsair XMS Pro DDR 400 1GB[/COLOR][/COLOR] [COLOR=royalblue]CoolerMaster WaveMaster Case[/COLOR]

Feb 2, 2006, 10:05 PM	#7
Customgamer1 Fell off the tech wagon Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 2,273 Rep Power: 74 System Specs	Well you can add this to the list of the most retarded cases of all time. Just like the Mcdonald pointless case about how people say they are getting fat from them?? well if you don't eat there you will not get fat same with the ipod don't turn it up so much = no hearing loss.... __________________ Asus Laptop: 2.5 Intel Core 2 Duo, 4gigs DDR 2, Windows 7 64bit! Windows 7 > OSX!

Feb 2, 2006, 07:52 PM	#2
nohbody HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 61 Rep Power: 0	I am simply stunned at the stupidity of some people Next the iPod will be blamed for global warming and locust plagues .... sheesh

Feb 2, 2006, 08:48 PM	#4
aerospace HardwareHeaven Newbie Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 19 Rep Power: 0	Umm, that's like as if I took my car and ran it through a crowd of people and then sued the manufacturer of the car for that it did not come with a safeguard for stopping me from doing that. What a f*cktard dickwad.

Feb 2, 2006, 10:07 PM	#9
Sandok DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 9,472 Rep Power: 0	Meh the iPods in europe are already limited...

Feb 2, 2006, 10:20 PM	#10
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	its beyond idiotic and the sad thing is, this is becoming more and more frequent in the computer and technology sector. I mean, I could lose my hearing if I put my ears to the pipes of my yamaha R1, but would I do that or would I sue Yamaha? The sooner judges reverse these decisions and fine the people filling the lawsuits the better. Anyone heard of a volume control?

Feb 2, 2006, 10:32 PM	#11
Babalou HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 132 Rep Power: 0	I beleive the death penalty is in order to prevent idiots like that from breeding.

Feb 2, 2006, 11:43 PM	#13
YAYitsAndrew Anti-Piracy Poster Boy Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: NJ Posts: 2,605 Rep Power: 79 System Specs	I think there's some merit here. I bet a lot of you play music from your headphones at a level that you deem acceptable, but is still detrimental to your hearing. This is a case of people not knowing what's good for them. Apple (and others) may be providing a product that causes permanent damage to people's ears and not telling them (or not getting through to them) in an effective manner. It may be that, for the safety of an entire generation, these things need to be sold with a lower max volume. We're not talking about one night at a concert or a club, We're talking about 7 days a week multi-hour damage to your hearing. I don't know if a lawsuit is the way to go, but the hearing concern needs to be brought to people's attention. __________________ "It is because the resistance to paying for copyrighted material, although often characterized as arising from a supposed technical burden or principled concern for the public interest, arises rather from exactly the same segment of the brain that is dominant in shoplifters." - Mark Helprin, Digital Barbarism In other words, it's never okay to steal even if you think you have a good reason! www.yayitsandrew.com

Feb 3, 2006, 12:31 AM	#17
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,688 Rep Power: 173 System Specs	I think it would be cool if iPods has the "night mode" that many home theatre receivers and pc sound cards have that would limit spikes of high volume as long as it could be disabled. __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Feb 3, 2006, 01:00 AM	#20
Dark Lord HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 5,945 Rep Power: 125 System Specs	im still waiting for some one to sue some one over the huge subwoofers people put in their cars. 2000watt systems being played inside a closed area like that will and do cause hearing loss. i honestly cant sit in my friends car when hes got it cranked, way to freaking loud for my tastes. now if we have the windows open, and going down the highway, its not too bad. __________________

Feb 3, 2006, 05:57 AM	#22
Sandok DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 9,472 Rep Power: 0	The thing is some people wanna listen without having ANY background noise and thus on max... You gotta be an idiot if you think that won't hurt ur ears. My mom used to tell me and all and if ever, with my Ipod, I never ever go past 50%. Always loud enough Stock earbuds mind you!

Feb 3, 2006, 04:52 PM	#23
Babalou HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 132 Rep Power: 0	Hmm.. I have it!!!! I'm going to the next live concert, then after the concert when my ears are ringing, I'll file a lawsuit against the band for playing at an excessive volume that caused damage to my hearing! I'm kidding of course, but I see no difference between this retarded lawsuit, and the scenerio I just mentionned

Feb 4, 2006, 02:20 PM	#27
YAYitsAndrew Anti-Piracy Poster Boy Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: NJ Posts: 2,605 Rep Power: 79 System Specs	The difference between the concert and the earbuds is the earbuds are sustained. People have them in their ears all day, a concert is just one night every couple weeks. Read this article, it explains how many people listen to headphones at very loud levels, equivalent to a concert, that can cause hearing damage after only a couple hours. Not too bad if you're going to a rock concert once in a while, but terrible if you're using your ipod to and from work every day. http://www.startribune.com/789/story/150546.html Saying "turning these earbuds up will hurt your hearing" isn't enough. They need to be better shielded from the outside noises so that people don't feel required to listen to their ipods at high volumes so much. Why target apple? They have something like 80% market share for mp3s. You could almost stop this whole problem with one stone if you could somehow require them to lower the volume if it's loud for sustained periods or produce better earbuds/headphones. __________________ "It is because the resistance to paying for copyrighted material, although often characterized as arising from a supposed technical burden or principled concern for the public interest, arises rather from exactly the same segment of the brain that is dominant in shoplifters." - Mark Helprin, Digital Barbarism In other words, it's never okay to steal even if you think you have a good reason! www.yayitsandrew.com

Feb 4, 2006, 09:45 PM	#28
SFOSOK 939 Goin Strong Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Ontario Posts: 7,033 Rep Power: 90 System Specs	I think the thread should be changed to "Lawsuit Claims people are morons" or Lawsuit claims ipods cause morons" __________________ Warning - Explicit Content Preceeding METAL!!