German electronics giant Siemens has warned that those who omit to charge their 65 series phone batteries could suffer hearing damage due to a manufacturing defect in some of their mobile phones.

Siemens said in a statement that if a telephone call is automatically cut off because of low battery, the disconnection melody could possibly start to play very loudly. In extreme cases, the high volume could lead to hearing damage.

In the meantime, Siemens recommends that users deactivate the disconnection melody or the disconnection animation function.

The German engineering giant has denied reports it is planning a recall of these defective phones. The company says it will offer problem fixing software, which can be accessed through internet download or customer services.

(CRI August 31, 2004)