A class action lawsuit against Apple has been filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose claiming that the iPod is responsible for causing hearing loss in the people that use the music player. According to The Mercury News, the complaint states that iPods are “Inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss.”
The iPod manuals do, however, have warnings that detail the potential for hearing loss if used inappropriately, including “permanent hearing loss may occur if earphones or headphones are used at high volume.”
The ability to cause noise-induced hearing loss isn’t any greater in the iPod than any other music player, according to experts. Deanna Meinke, a professor of audiology at the University of Northern Colorado, commented “We have numerous products in the marketplace that have the potential to damage hearing. The risk is there but the risk lies with the user and where they set the volume.”
The law suit is seeking compensation for plaintiffs’ hearing loss, and to force Apple to modify the iPod to make it safer.