I consider entry level to mean:

  None CHF/Nitrided/CL barrels.  IE: plainejane 4150 chromemoly barrels.  Which work....but are definitely cheaper.  There's also a higher chance of an improperly drilled gas port.

   BCG that is only MPI rather than HPT/MPI, which leads to higher chances of failure.

   Generic type handguards that don't dissipate heat as well, or are lower quality aluminum that may strip screw holes.

    Less time spent on QC.   The company assumes to makes it money and reputation on replacing bad parts rather than catching them before they leave the floor.

   A good example is Radical Firearms, a good company, with pretty solid guns.....but does have a MUCH larger problem with malfing guns, poor fitting, wobbly parts,etc. than say Spikes tactical.

In the past I have used PSA for lower parts kits.  Recently I dropped to some cheaper stuff from Delta Team Tactical.  It works fine, but doesn't go together quite as smoothly.  Just little things.

Roll pins are a bit harder to start, pivot and take-down pins are either a little tight or a little loose. Large components like a no-name buttstock might be a little heavier than a brand name.

But overall, worth saving $15 in my mind.  And, here in Utah, I get Delta Team Tactical stuff next day usually.

I did notice a difference in the standard PSA trigger group compared to their EPT group.  Sometimes with the standard one, you get a gritty and uneven pull.   I decided to spend the extra on any future ones I get.

Now when I buy a LPK, I get one without the trigger or grip.  I figure that I'll add a fancy trigger into it and then get the grip that I want.  But for an entry-level firearm, what's include really isn't that bad considering you can spend $200+ on a new trigger.

Now when I buy a LPK, I get one without the trigger or grip.  I figure that I'll add a fancy trigger into it and then get the grip that I want.  But for an entry-level firearm, what's include really isn't that bad considering you can spend $200+ on a new trigger.

The last ones I got, PSA had a daily deal with their EPT and a Magpul grip for $62 shipped which isn't bad.  They run that every week or two.  They also frequently have the whole lower kits with the EPT and a CTR or STR stock.

This weekend I got a Geissele G2S trigger group to go with a Brownells kit I had.  DPMS has them on sale right now.  Still a little pricey at $120 shipped, but I am going to use it in the semi-custom 7mm-08 AR-10 I am building, so I wanted to go high end on so e of the stuff.

^^^ This!
I think of "entry level" as the M-4 carbine I have sitting next to my other gear at work that I got from Crane, Indiana as part of a shipment of 8 M-4 carbines.
It's 14.5", M-4 profile (obviously) and the lower was made by FN and has a 1/7 twist barrel. It's full auto or semi.
That's "entry level" in that is has no options. A civilian version of that with a 16" barrel and no full-auto selection would be "entry level" equivalent.
Then I can do whatever I feel I should do to make it "right" for me. (I would ditch the M-4 profile barrel first because it blows, but otherwise the same rifle)