If you are looking for a "cheap" red dot, then the Primary Arms, Bushnell TRS25, and the Vortex Strkefire lines are good choices. (Under $180). I have a Primary Arms on my 15-22 and it is good. Seems to be quite good quality for a budget red-dot. (Under $75 delievered and included mount). In bright sun and a bright background, the dot can get lost and hard to find.
Once you get to the $200 range the Lucid HS7 is supposed to be very, very good.
At $360 or so you can get the Aimpoint PRO.... that is the one I have, and really love it. It is extremely bright if needed for bright sun, light backgrounds, never have a problem with seeing the dot. This is mounted on my SHTF/SD/HD gun so I wanted something that would be as close to bullet proof as I could find.
I haven't seen an EOTech for that price, and the battery life was a concern. I do like the larger diameter ring with the dot..... but the single 2 moa dot of my PRO is just fine.
Once you break $400 your options open up greatly. The "holy grail" would be one of the ACOG's, but as you say they are plenty of $$ ... and they definitely hold their price well.