Hopefully the Apple AirPods 3 and Apple AirPods Pro 2 will not have stems. However, the rumored next-generation version of Apple's earbuds will not abandon the product's iconic design elements.

I have had my ears pierced since third grade and have regularly worn various styles of earrings. Right now, I wear simple pearl stud earrings that were given to me as a gift a few weeks ago. But as much as I want to keep adorning my lobes, I may have to avoid the best wireless earbuds, Apple's AirPods.

Spending most of my day at my desk, I didn't notice the AirPods Pro's stem grazing the top of my earlobe. However, as I walked around my apartment, I noticed a ticking sound. I can't say I was bothered enough to investigate.

However, while walking a short distance to the pharmacy, the person on the other end of the line asked if I was using a typewriter as I continued to make calls with the AirPods Pro attached.

While I could not hear the awful rhythmic clacking sound that the caller complained about, I could certainly feel the sound of the earphone shaft lightly hitting the earring. Perhaps "rattle" is a better way to describe this sensation. I twisted the buds so that they were more horizontal than I would normally wear the AirPods Pro, so that the stem was less close to the jewelry.

Still in my quiet apartment, promising to call a friend later, I continued my walk, but the adjustments I made did not last. Before I could return home, the stem made contact with my earring again.

Look, I've been preaching for nearly a year that I'm completely done with wireless earbuds. But you can't beat the convenience of AirPods.

Easy pairing via H1, good battery life, and portability make the AirPods appealing to me, even after trying alternatives like the PowerBeats Pro and Jabra Elite Active 75t. I wear my Apple AirPods Max whenever I can, but carrying them around is difficult. Yes, even with the case that turns the headband into a carrying handle.

I wish Apple would make AirPods that are as reliable, pocketable, and stemless as the other AirPods. And I may not be the only one with this request; I found a Reddit thread and a MacRumors support forum discussing users suffering from the same problem as me.

One respondent, who probably doesn't wear earrings, recommends removing them when wearing AirPods. Hello? My style reputation is already brittle enough from working at home in sweatpants for nearly two years. So if my AirPods are going to cling to that stem, I think I need Amazon earrings to hold my AirPods in place.