I like the word 'inexpensive' to replace cheap, agree, cheap can, especially when out of context give a bad impression.

You hit the nail on the head about truing and tensioning, there's nothing wrong with an inexpensive wheelset, if they are well built, just about any wheel set should last a long time; if badly built / not checked on a pre-delivery inspection / not maintained when an issue occurs, they will last much less.