I have an old Krups that works just fine. It makes fruit-enhanced power shakes most days. I haven't done ice in it for years, though, but as I recall it didn't do so bad a job with it.

My brother went for the Blendtec machine. He is simply enchanted by it and continually dreams up more uses for it. I had no idea they cost that much! Jeepers!

I think my Krups was about $100 or so. The first one was a gift from a college girlfriend- an accomplished Austrian pastry chef. She knew her way around a kitchen, for sure.
The first one died a horrible death when the idiot I sublet my apartment to one summer decided he'd make hummus with it, but didn't cook the beans.
*facepalm*
When I got back in September I found the motor burned up and had to go buy a duplicate. Been in service for better than 10 years now.