Aren’t Dacia cars just facelifted older Renault models with the manufacturing moved to markets with cheaper labour?

No, they originated from Romania models and have nothing to do with original Renault models AFAIK. I own Dacia Sandero 2015, it's as dumb as possible and I love it. Not sure about latest models, I know that there's some smart stuff added, like remote engine start, but AFAIK no Internet connectivity yet, just radio channel (and, of course, it's optional).

OP was correct, the early Dacia models were license-built older Renault designs.

The first post-merger models like Sandero were based on a stretched Renault Clio 3 platform.

The new ones are built on the Renault-Nissan CMF-B, as are new Ladas.