AirPods Pro 2nd generation poor bluetooth range

AirPods Pro 2nd generation (USBC) paired with IiPhone 15 Pro.......anyone noticing that the bluetooth range is very, very poor. I use AirPods whilst walking and noticing that if the iPhone is in my trouser pocket I am getting constant dropouts when streaming music over cellular. I've tried all the obvious things, removing/resetting AirPods, resetting network settings etc and nothing has resolved the issue. I think this started occurring during a recent update (either the phone or the AirPods). They are becoming nearly impossible to use.....and very frustrating. Range seems better when streaming over wifi....but still unstable. Both iPhone and AirPods are on the latest firmware. Had a iPhone/AirPods Pro combination for a number of years and never had issues like this. Not reached out to Apple yet as I am guessing they will ask me to reset the phone and set up as new.......which I am not prepared to do.