I've done A/B tests with Airpods (gen2) and the built-in mic on my M1 iMac and people always say Airpods are better, but both are good.

I've noticed what you're saying with people on older (Apple) laptops. I wonder if there's a connection. Honestly, sometimes I could swear that people are using the built-in mic and not the Airpods, but they swear they are not.