I would like to offer some of my opinions.
1) First, there is virtually nothing perfect in today world. It's possible that impossible happens; Tiger Woods failed to win the PGA despite we all expected him to win on Sunday.
2) As consumer, we expect better quality over more expensive goods; you pay what you get. However, most of the time, we still hear a lot of quality issues associate with reputable brands. But we also have to know why we buy that particular brand. Like Panerai, its rich history, passion shares by so many purists, and also a sporty watch that you can wear up and down. I do own few Panerais, yes, one under repair, and few running pretty well.
3) It is very true that when an expensive watch we own breakdown, we get upset and very frustrated. It's human nature. It is how far one want to take. If you feel that it doesn't worth to pursue this brand, by all mean, we can move on the other brands. What I would do when my watch has issue is to take it out to the Boutique or AD and even write to the Service Center to verify the issue. If the issue cannot be resolved, I would then take it to the Service Center to repair.
4) But one thing I am very concern is the service. Good brands have to invest in their Service, I expect some issues with my watches, but I cannot accept bad quality service.
Maybe I am an optimistic person. Always look at the brighter sight!
Cheers!
Nien