We used Wet Edge Primera in our pool for the same reason. It was installed July 2010 and so far we like it very much. Perfectly smooth finish and beautiful. You can see pictures in our build.

Here is a link that might be useful: Our build

Mudn,
thanks for your link - your pool is beautiful- especially like those tiles on the outside of the spa. So nice to know that you have had the Primera Stone for a year and it is working out well for you. I am really leaning towards it.

You also may want to consider Pebblefina. It's pebbletec's smooth surface. I am in the same boat of wanting a smooth surface that lasts longer than plaster. It is supposed to be an aggregate, so should last.

I need to amend my last post. I'm hearing different things about Pebblefina. Per PT site, I think it is equivalent to the quartz products but use stone as the pozzolans into the cement mixture.

We used it in ours. Since it's less than a few months old, no info on how it wears. But the look and feel is perfect for us. Check our pool build thread for lots of photos of how the surface is installed.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cen Cali Pool Build Thread

We just finished replastering our pool and decided on Sun Stone Pearl ("Aqua Blue") which has a very small pebble size and the PB has done many of them. We wanted a pebble finish and we were able to see an existing pool. We were able to wade in the pool to see what the finish felt like and although it was only a few minutes, it seemed very smooth. Water color is turning more blue as we are only finishing the first week. Looks great so far.

We are also in the Houston area and are about to replaster our pool. The folks who are doing our pool do 1200 pools a year and use a lot of Wet Edge. We talked about the fact that our pool is shallow and the kids are on their feet all the time they are in it. They suggest the Wet Edge Luna Quartz and say they use it in about 70% of the pools they do. I saw the Primera Stone last year and asked about whether it would be better -- easier on their feet. It costs more, but has the same warranty and they didn't feel we would notice that much difference. It does have a fine textured pebble appearance though -- the Luna Quartz is a sandy appearance.

What did you end up getting? We just picked out the Wet Edga Primera Stone in Lazurite. We also live in Houston. Picking the plaster was hardest decision. We have 4 kids and they suggested this finish so it doesn’t tear up their feet.

do you have a picture of your lazurite?