Are you wearing AirPods wrong? Man sparks fierce Twitter debate

Have you been wearing AirPods wrong all along? Photo / Getty Images

A man who was spotted wearing his Apple AirPods upside down on public transport has sparked a fierce debate on Twitter.

Technology writer Casey Newton, from San Francisco, spotted the passenger in question on the city's Muni (bus and metro system) and shared a photo on social media at the weekend.

A man who decided to flip his AirPods - and his sunglasses - has sparked debate. Photo / Twitter

He captioned his tweet: "Absolutely shaken by the way this man on Muni is wearing his AirPods."

The post went viral, attracting more than 26,600 likes and 4,900 retweets - as well as a string of comments.

Many said they were equally baffled by the man's unconventional placing of his headphones, with one simply tweeting: "Intervene."

Another wrote: "I just tried this and I can't fathom how it works for him."

One Tweet likened him to Mr Potato Head. Photo / Twitter

"There's so much going on here. I have questions," another chimed in, while one joked: "He doesn't know the correct way to put anything on his head," referring to him also wearing his sunglasses the wrong way round.

But while many people shared Casey's sentiments, several claimed they found the headphones actually fit better when worn upside down.

Twitter user David Galbraith admitted: "Just tried this and they fit better."

Another tweeter revealed: "I have hearing loss in my left ear. This is how I use them I also use regular headphones in a funny way. So the back of the ear can pick up more. That isn't scientific lol just works for me and others who can't hear."

Zachary Wilson shared an image of him wearing his ear pods in the same manner, claiming: "It works. And feels pretty good."

Pranay Srinivasan also posted a photo of him wearing the headphones upside down. He wrote: "It works. Left airpod in right ear. cc @pt sound quality 2X."

On the official Apple AirPods website and commercial, the tip of the ear pod (where the microphones are located) is pointed down towards the mouth of the wearer.

A spokesperson for Apple on an online communities forum said this is the way the built-in microphone can be best understood.

He added: "It depends on your preference, there is no right or wrong."