Many 250 appliances are targeted at landlords who care that the applicance is cheap and works for years without complaints. They don't care about features - they will never use them - just that it is good enough to check the box and the users don't get so mad they complain. They also don't care that it looks good so you get things that look cheap but last.

Note that I said many above. there are also 250 appliances built for the penny wise and pound foolish - they will break in a few years (just long enough that the warranty is up).

Even knowing that though, often there are features of the more expensive appliances that while not needed are nice enough that I'm willing to pay extra.