Paro in action:
http://paro.jp/english/movie.html

I read an intersting comment on Gizmodo about this. To complain about a "saftey feature" on an ipod is like complaining about seat belts on a car. You don't have to wear it, but it can save you from harm.

If you can't agree with that, you deserve hearing damage.

I can't believe the ignorance and utter lack of understand exhibited on this comment thread. One of government's functions is to protect it's citizens from harm. If you were at all familiar with hearing issues, you'd understand the concept of TS (threshold shift).

As commenter #12 points out, a person may not even realize they are doing damage to their hearing. Upon hearing a certain level of noise/sound, the ear's sensitivity level will decrease as a measure of protection - adjusting your perception of how loud it actually is. This can be both temporary or permanent depending on length of exposure.

I live in Manhattan and it's loud as hell so I used to kick the volume up just to hear it over the street sounds. I'm not an "idiot" and I didn't realize how much damage was being done to my hearing until I started noticing permanent ringing in my ears.

There is no need to claim an "end of personal responsibility" because even with the ability to turn on a volume cap, you can still turn it off and do all the damage you want.

As Apple sells more and more TV content through iTunes, it seems to me that they will be less and less likely to offer a set top mac with DVR functions. They would essentially be cutting out a huge chunk of revenue.

What are these "mobile phones" everyone is speaking of?