a number of years ago, I had a pretty expensive iron. It lasted maybe a year. Then I bought a Sunbeam el-cheapo at WalMart for $10 - never put water in it, and it lasted about 10 years or so. About 3 years ago, that one finally died. I went back to WalMart, got the same brand, only now it's only $6.
It's very light-weight, does not have auto-shut off, and I never put water in it.
More $$ does not necessarily mean it's a better product.