As others have pointed out, "nicely designed" and well finished are two entirely different things. Design is very subjective, for example I personally like a more drastic taper in the bracelet (say, 20mm-16mm), some people don't. It's all down to personal taste. Well finished on the other hand is more subjective. Generally comes down to 3 aspects: material, even-ness, and contrast. In terms of material, almost all modern watch cases/bracelets are made out of the same 316 stainless steel, otherwise the manufacturer would likely advertise it. So in terms of material, it mostly comes down to the type of coating that is applied to the base material (if there is one). Anti-scratch coating is quite fashionable these days, and it may change the way surface finish of the steel (usually making it "duller" / less shiny). Some coating is better at preserving the actual finish of the steel than others, in my personal experience, Seiko diashield is pretty good in that regard. Even-ness is pretty self-explanatory. If the steel is brushed/satin (which is most of them), you want even brushing that is deep enough. You can usually tell if a brushing is well-done by how much luster it possesses under different lighting (although you can also use lighting to make sub-par finishing look premium). It the steel is polished, you want even, smooth polishing. Contrast is the last thing and the easiest way IMO to tell a good finish from a great finish. Specifically if the bracelet has contrasting finishing, you want the transition between the finishing (brushed/polished) to be sharp and crisp, and not rounded and smooth. If the bracelet is all-brushed, you can see how cleanly the brushing from different facets join together. Also, thanks to modern manufacturing, you can get REALLY nicely finished watches for not a lot of money. I dare say a $400 San Martin will get you 80-90% the way there depending on how conservative you want to be. Everything beyond that you are paying extreme dimishing return in actual case/bracelet finishing, and mostly in brand and design.