1. Swiss movement. Doesn't matter to me if it's quartz or mechanical.
2. Rotating bezel. Don't mark up the bezel like it's a dive watch if it's not.
3. Screw-down crown / good depth rating. The two go hand in hand. A 10 atmosphere plus rating tells me a watch is quality.
4. 24-hour feature. Sometimes I get slizzered and it's nice to know if it's dawn or dusk when I wake up.
5. High-frequency oscillator, for quartz watches. The Bulova Precisionist introduced in 2010 qualifies. Its oscillator beats circa 262,000 times per second, and this pays dividends in terms of accuracy. This movement also allow for for a sweeping second hand.