p0pperini
Unique scratches and stains like used goods.
I may be a little nervous because I have read the forum carefully,
but I don't admit that there are any new 400USD watch that a noob like me can find.
Those scratches and stains are almost certainly on the protective plastic, not on the watch itself. That's what the protective plastic is for.
I admit to having a small (very small) amount of sympathy with you over the tiny (very tiny) mis-casting on the springbar access hole. This sort of defect should mean the part is rejected at the factory - and it's only affecting one end link, so it's not like they're junking a whole case.
The main problem with QC pics though is that they magnify a watch and its details to 100+ times their actual size, and the chances are that you would never, ever notice almost any defect of the sort that people wail about here in normal use. Even when taking wristies. Which also explains why more seasoned members (who are aware of this) get irritated at the forensic examination of QC pics and the rejection of watches due to small, in fact tiny, issues.