add Kool Stop pads to Tektro brakes and they function well enough for 90% or better of us out there. They feel the same as my Campagnolo Centaur brakes w/ Kool Stops. Both are, as you mentioned, cost cutting measures. Most people don't look closely (or much care) at the brakes, cranks some more than others. Thus, those are the two things that get changed out to meet a price point.