Yes you are right.
If you do a notice of meeting “properly” you designate each item according to what they are, so for example:
Item X – for discussion
Item Y – for approval
Item Z – for information
That way it is quite clear for the records (or it should be) what was actually approved, as distinct from discussed/reviewed etc.
Note that you can’t put an item up for discussion and then at the meeting change it to a resolution.
In the case of an item that needs to be approved, such as a proposal for expenditure of some sort, the resolution has to be worded appropriately. In the first two examples you give whatever the items are they can’t be approved, because of the wording. As you say that is pretty pointless because you are back to square one.
In the case of the $3000 item, that isn’t properly worded either. It should be drafted something like this:
The Owners Corporation approve the quote for $3000 attached as Annexure A to the Notice of Meeting to supply X, and authorise the strata manager to progress [whatever it is].
And yes if there is no quote or information provided, in the strictest sense I don’t see how it can be approved, and I wouldn’t. How can it be reviewed if it isn’t attached, and how can an absentee owner give their voting intentions if they don’t have the information?