> But their $60 ANC headphones with cheap audio processing hardware in the headphones aren’t going to be sufficient.
Maybe, maybe not. Assuming Apple's motivation isn't pure self-dealing, it's very consistent with Apple's behavior to forbid or impede doing things that are absolutely possible but sometimes result in a sub-par experience.
How many $60 headphones work with Google’s version?
It's oddly difficult to find solid answers to this with a web search, but it appears that it just needs protocol support, not a mic that meets specific standards. The (discontinued?) JBL 110GA is $40 on Amazon.
Which I’m not able to find on Amazon…
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07G2LXMDV
7 year old used headphones with one in stock using Micro USB in 2025?
All of them.
Not according to the official specs….