(The following is taken from Rich Tehrani’s VoIP blog:)

The fierce competition to replace the iPod with a better product has failed so far. Many companies from Microsoft to SanDisk (News - Alert) have tried to take on the slim white music player and with all the competition, iPods keep on selling at record-setting numbers. Who would have thought the one electronic gadget able to slow the pace of iPod sales would in fact be the “pacemaker.”

A new study shows caution should be used when iPods are used around people with pacemakers.

More specifically, the study, led by Jay Thaker, a US high school student, whose father is an electrophysiologist and mother is a rheumatologist, concluded that iPod interaction with pacemakers can lead to a misdiagnosis in heart function.

In reality it is unlikely this news will slow down iPod sales by much, but it seems even the elderly are huge fans of music on the go. Perhaps Apple’s (News - Alert) big product launch after the iPhone will be an iPod with a pacemaker built in. After all, don’t you think as the younger generation of today begins to age, they will want to be able to listen to music while their hearts are beating rhythmically? There could even be a setting that correlates heart rate with music type. ;)

For more see Elderly iPod users skip a beat.

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Rich Tehrani is President and Group Editor in Chief at TMC (News - Alert). In addition he is the Chairman of the world’s best attended VoIP event, Internet Telephony Conference & Expo.