News Archive for 06/02/01

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Hearing damage lawsuit

02/01, 8:40pm

iPod lawsuit claims hearing damage

A new lawsuit against Apple claims that the company's popular iPod player causes hearing loss, that the company does not adequately warn users of the risks, and that the design of its white earbud phones excerbate inherent risks. The Mercury News reports that an iPod owner has filed a federal lawsuit, claiming the device causes hearing loss and that the iconic music player is "inherently defective in design and are not sufficiently adorned with adequate warnings regarding the likelihood of hearing loss." The complaint, which seeks class action status, was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in San Jose, California. Ironically, at least one report has claimed that Apple's engineers increased the sound output because Apple CEO Steve Jobs is partially deaf. The lawsuit seeks compensation for plaintiffs' hearing loss and upgrades that will make the iPods safer, citing the company's early compliance efforts for sound volume in France.

iPod nano battery program

02/01, 5:10pm

iPodResQ Nano battery program

iPodResQ today began offering its new iPod nano high-capacity battery program, a nationwide service designed for all Nano owners that want longer play life. The service is performed with a same-day turn around, as iPodResQ sends a custom iBox each customer location in the continental U.S. via an overnight courier to pickup the Nano for overnight delivery back to the iPodResQ service center. PodResQ receives the Nano, installs a new 400mAh high-capacity battery the same day it is received, and returns the device back to the customer overnight. "We are the first company to offer a high-capacity battery for the nano and we are happy to report excellent results from our newest battery that offers an approximate 10 percent increase in play time from the factory battery," said Ryan Arter, President of iPodResQ. Arter also said that a self-install version of the battery is not available due to the complexity of the installation. The iPodResQ iPod nano high-capacity battery program is priced at a $64 flat-rate for all customers inside the continental U.S, and is also provided to customers in Alaska, Hawaii, or any international location at an additional cost to cover extra shipping expenses.

\'iPods for Senators\'

02/01, 4:45pm

'iPods for Senators' fundraising campaign

The Intellectual Property Action Committee (IPAC) is raising funds to buy a fifth-generation video iPod for a host of U.S. Senators, following a recent hearing on the highly-debated "Broadcast Flag" and "Audio Flag" proposals which took an unexpected turn. "Last week, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing on the 'Broadcast Flag' and 'Audio Flag,' a set of proposals by the MPAA and RIAA that would stifle innovation by giving content holders a virtual veto over new technologies and existing user rights," IPAC claims. Senator Stevens of Alaska, however, surprised the audience at the hearing after announcing that his daughter had bought him an iPod, which suddenly gave the 82-year old committee chairman "a much greater understanding of the many ways innovative technology can create choice for consumers."

iPod nano vs Shuffle

02/01, 2:40pm

1GB iPod nano may replace Shuffle

Apple's tiny iPod shuffle may be replaced by a new 1GB version of the iPod nano, according to recent reports. Appleinsider reports that the possible new Nano version would most likely feature a small screen, thus making it a more enticing low-end product in the digital music player market. Adding a screen would reportedly only cost Apple about $8 more per unit. The smallest iPod nano version ships with 2GB of storage, costing $200, whereas the Shuffle costs $100-130 with 512MB- 1GB available.

iTunes UK, nominee music

02/01, 10:45am

iTunes UK offers Brit nominee music

iTunes UK is offering music from all of this year's Brit award nominees, with albums from each artist available for purchase at the store, as well as an exclusive remix of Beyonce's hit single "Check on it." Nominees this year include Antony and the Johnsons, Ian Brown, James Blunt, Robbie Williams, Will Young, Charlotte Church, Kate Bush, Katie Melua, KT Tunstall, Natasha Bedingfield, Coldplay, Franz Ferdinand, Gorillaz, Hard-Fi, Kaiser Chiefs, Sugababes, Tony Christie, Arctic Monkeys, The Magic Numbers, Craig David, Dizzee Rascal, Kano. Lemar, Miss Dynamite, and Kasabian. Helene Grimaud's new album 'Reflection' is also available exclusively on iTunes, according to Macworld UK. Other exclusives include Coup deBam, Fania Music All Stars, The Go! Team, and Isobel Campbell.

Apple fights new iPod tax

02/01, 9:25am

Apple fights iPod tax in Switzerland

Apple is among a group lobbying to postpone a new iPod tax set to take effect in Switzerland on March 1. The new tariff will add the cost of flash- and drive-based music players as well as audio/video recorders with a built-in hard drive; it could increase prices as much as 20 percent on some items, according to swissinfo. The of the new tax follows a 5-year musician trade group lobby effort with Swiss authorities and could generate around SFr2.5 million a year, according to the report. "Swico, whose 400 members include Apple, IBM and Sony, is also unhappy with what it calls "discrimination" between players with flash memory and those with a hard drive. The tax on a four-gigabyte MP3 player with flash memory will be almost SFr19 ($15), while that on a four-gigabyte iPod will be around SFr2. A 400-gigabyte DVD recorder will incur an extra SFr138 charge."