The AirPods Pro are already excellent wireless earbuds. But when I found a problem I couldn't seem to solve, it kept the $25 ear tips from becoming useless.

I was a latecomer to the AirPods Pro party and had just purchased them last Black Friday. Nonetheless, I immediately fell in love. The sound quality is just the right balance, they work for everything I want to hear, they are easy to use, and the active noise cancellation (ANC) is surprisingly powerful for earbuds.

Over the past few months, I've been working from home more often, so I've been wearing the AirPods Pro while sitting at my desk writing. Here, they work beautifully, providing unobtrusive music while blocking out the noise of my roommates and neighbors. At the time, I did not realize how limited the effect of these buds would be.

The problem arose when I resumed my running, which had been interrupted by laziness. As with all relationships, the change in routine was a new source of stress.

The fit of the medium-sized gel ear tips that came in the AirPods Pro box was good for sitting around the house, but they loosened easily; the AirPods Pro was like interval training, and I found that the gel ear tips were too tight for me to use, so I had to use the AirPods Pro to get them to fit.

Not wanting to lose my AirPods Pro but also not wanting to give up running, I started looking into custom ear tips. I finally came across the Comply AirPods Pro 2.0 ear tips.

This accessory comes in a pack of three for $25. You can buy three pairs of the same size-small, medium, and large-but since I only have one pair of AirPods Pro, I instead bought the variety pack, which sends you a pair of each size to try out.

Installing the tips was surprisingly easy; the AirPods Pro have their own clip mechanism for attaching ear tips in the Apple fashion, but the Comply tips came on and off just as easily as the originals.

Putting the buds on again, the sound was identical to the AirPods Pro, which I already know and love. However, the foam tips kept the buds securely in my ears, allowing me to focus on improving my running technique and speed rather than trying to keep from dropping the AirPods Pro into a nearby drainage ditch.

Replacing the standard ear tips comes at a small cost. They are inconvenient to put in the ear because you have to crush the foam with your fingertips to fit them in. The color scheme also changes, as the basic AirPods Pro, which are almost pure white, will have more black when fitted with the Comply tips. However, these are very forgiving.

Apple has some of the best industrial designers, but no designer can make a product that fits everyone. Besides, Apple has a bit of a reputation for pursuing the company's goals, regardless of whether those goals make its products more usable. Yes, the Lightning port.

Fortunately, the huge ecosystem surrounding Apple means that more people can enjoy Apple products to the fullest. Of course, care must be taken when replacing parts so as not to break something you can't fix yourself. But hopefully, it will prevent the $249 AirPods Pro from becoming an expensive waste.