I bought my first pair because they were on sale. I put about 5,000 miles on them, including a couple of loaded tours without a flat. Admittedly, those were 700x37C's. My current pair are 700x28's.

I can't recall whether I've had a flat on the current pair or not.

Honestly, that is my sole criteria for judging tires.

I'm a bit too uncultured (or not enough of a bike snob) to discuss the feel of most tires. I can't tell the difference between real rubber (e.g. Continental) and synthetic rubber (almost everything else). I can barely tell the difference between sew-ups and clinchers.