You can skip boiling the water by using distilled water, trading off money for time.
I am not fussy about ice cubes but we have well water, which makes stinky ice cubes (literally). Most of the time, I just buy ice, since otherwise I would have to buy the water to make it with.
For those of you buying ice, who don't care whether it's perfectly clear or how it's shaped, I recommend asking for bags of ice at your local fast-food emporium. Most of them will sell it, even if they don't advertise the fact.
Recently, I was caught out without a cooler after buying some perishables, so we stopped at a Walgreens to pick up a foam one. Walgreens wanted $1.79 for 7 pounds of ice. Just across the street, White Castle sold us 10 pounds for $1.09. I'm sure it came out of their ice machine, starting with Chicago tap water, but it kept my cheese and smoked fish cold just as well as more expensive ice and is now reposing in my freezer, ready to add to drinks.