Lawsuit: iPods & ear damage

A man in Louisiana is telling Apple to "turn it down"! John Kiel Patterson is the plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit filed in San Jose federal court this week. The case claims Apple markets its popular digital music player knowing that it can lead to permanent hearing loss if it is played too loudly," the San Jose Mercury News reports. "In addition to damages, the … suit seeks to force the Cupertino company to upgrade its iPod software to limit the sound output to 100 decibels… and provide earphones that can prevent hearing loss," the Mercury News adds. What's interesting, here, is that Apple does keep it to 100 decibels in iPods sold in Europe (the suit says France required it in 2002). IPods here can reach decibel levels of 115-130. Meanwhile, in an in-depth "reality check" on earbuds' impact, the Washington Post reported that hearing loss is definitely on the increase in the US. Though it certainly predates earbuds, researchers found "increased risk of hearing loss among people who listen to loud music through headphones for extended periods of time." The Post talked to a key source in many news reports, Brian J. Fligor, director of diagnostic audiology at Boston Children's Hospital, who suggests, as a guideline, that people keep earbud-type listening time to an hour a day and volume below 85 decibels, or about 60% of maximum volume, where the risk of hearing damage begins, according to OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration).