Home / Watches / Affordable Watches

The Definitive Budget Hyperwatch Is Back with Its Wildest Version Yet

This is not a watch for wallflowers.

Side view of a M.A.D.Editions wristwatch with a domed crystal, a silver case, and a colorful bezel featuring yellow and green stripes. The watch has a red ring with white numerals and dots around the edge, and the strap is two-toned with purple on the left and red on the right. The crown is silver and textured for grip.M.A.D.Editions

By Johnny Brayson

Published

·

Every product is carefully selected by our editors. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission. Learn more

These days, it’s easier than ever to get a watch with crazy complications and an avant-garde design. Such pieces used to be exclusive to ultra-high-end brands like MB&F, De Bethune and Greubel Forsey, but thanks to clever democratization from affordable brands like Christopher Ward, SpaceOne and others, similarly styled watches can now be had for just a few thousand dollars instead of a few hundred thousand.

Of course, the king of these affordable hyperwatches is undoubtedly the M.A.D.Editions M.A.D.1S. Not only because the original M.A.D.1 arguably kicked off the trend when it debuted in 2022, but also because M.A.D.Editions is a subbrand of MB&F, one of the most prestigious makers of those six-figure hyperwatches that the budget watches are trying to emulate. In other words, it’s a budget hyperwatch from a real-deal hyperwatch brand.

Today, M.A.D.Editions has launched not one but three new versions of the M.A.D.1S — and they’re the wildest watches we’ve seen from the brand yet.

Close-up of a watch movement featuring colorful components, including a yellow gear-like structure, a blue metallic ring with a screw, and a purple section with the text "M.A.D'1 x Y" engraved on it. Visible silver gears and intricate mechanical details are also present.
The M.A.D.1S is back and crazier than ever.
M.A.D.Editions

Dream watches

For this new trio of M.A.D.1S watches, M.A.D.Editions turned to British-Nigerian artist Yinka Ilori. Ilori’s work is known for its bold, bright and playful color combinations, and he has imbued the M.A.D.1S with his signature style.

As mentioned, the M.A.D.1S ‘Grow Your Dreams’ comes in three varieties: Sun, Water and Nature. Each has a distinct color for the watch’s signature dial-facing rotor: bright yellow for Sun, blue for Water and green for Nature.

Three colorful wristwatches with transparent dials showcasing intricate mechanical movements. Each watch has a distinct color combination: the left watch features a blue and green bezel with a light blue strap, the middle watch has a yellow and green bezel with a red strap, and the right watch displays a yellow and blue bezel with a green strap. The straps have a textured pattern, and the watches have a modern, vibrant design.
From left: Water, Nature and Sun.
M.A.D.Editions

The watches all feature mismatched two-piece rubber straps stamped with a leaf pattern by Ilori, with each side of the strap being a different color.

Sun’s strap is yellow on one half and green on the other, Water’s is dark and light blue and Nature’s strap is perhaps the most unexpected, pairing purple with red. The straps are secured via a steel butterfly clasp signed “M.A.D” on one side and “Yinka Ilori” on the other.

A wristwatch with a transparent dial showcasing its intricate mechanical gears and components. The watch has a silver case and a unique two-tone silicone strap, with the left side green and the right side yellow. The wearer has a tattoo on their forearm and is positioned against a yellow background.
Artist Yinka Ilori models one of the M.A.D.1S editions he designed.
M.A.D.Editions

But there’s more going on with the ‘Grow Your Dreams’ editions than the addition of new colors. The flying titanium rotor has been completely reshaped, with a more intricate design and an incorporated tree pattern by Ilori. It’s also thinner than before, and features the artist’s “Grow Your Dreams” slogan in Super-LumiNova.

Also new is the watch’s bezel, which is now filled with polished HyCeram liquid ceramic. This is yet another area for the watch to show off some color, with Water getting a green ceramic bezel, Sun sporting a light blue one and Nature’s bezel taking on both bright yellow and green.

Side view of a wristwatch with a domed crystal and a blue bezel. The watch case is silver with two angular lugs. The time is indicated on a rotating purple ring with white numerals from 8 to 12 visible. The watch strap is green with an embossed pattern of abstract shapes.
Bezels colored with Hyceram ceramic are one of the features introduced on the M.A.D.1S ‘Grow Your Dreams.’
M.A.D.Editions

What’s that, you say? You want more color? Say no more. The baseplate of the watch’s inverted movement features a stamped wave pattern to go along with an anodized color treatment: blue for Water, red for Nature and purple for Sun. Even the watch’s crown has a splash of color, along with a repeat of Ilori’s tree pattern from the rotor.

The rotating hour cylinder, which is how you tell time on the M.A.D.1S, has also been slightly reworked, with a new, more fun-loving font in Super-LumiNova designed by Ilori himself. The movement inside remains an inverted version of the Swiss-made La Joux-Perret Cal. G101 automatic, and the case is still a 42 x 15mm vessel of stainless steel, sapphire crystal and mineral glass.

Close-up of the back of a wristwatch with a stainless steel case engraved with "M.A.D Edition Maximilian Büsser x Yinka Ilori." The watch features a red and purple strap, a purple crown, and is marked as water resistant to 3 ATM and made of 316L stainless steel. The phrase "Groom your dreams slowly" is also engraved on the case.
The watch maintains the same 42mm case as before, consisting of a stainless steel cage surrounding a mix of sapphire and mineral crystals.
M.A.D.Editions

Pricing and Availability

If you’re into color, then these are the watches for you: they’re pretty eye-catching. Personally, Nature is a bit too crazy for my taste, Yellow is decent and I would wear the hell out of Water with its cool mix of blues and greens. Inject it into my veins.

Also worth noting is that each watch comes with an all-white rubber strap with the same leaf texture as the bicolor straps, allowing you to tone down the style whenever you like (all straps are quick-release). This is a smart choice, as each version of the watch would definitely be more wearable on a white strap.

A modern wristwatch with a white textured rubber strap and a polished silver case. The watch face features a transparent design showcasing intricate mechanical components, highlighted by a blue and gold circular frame. The blue frame has cutouts and text including "Dreams," "Grow," and "Your." The crown has a yellow and gray design. The watch is displayed on a clear, wavy stand against a light gray background.
Each watch also includes a white rubber strap for a more toned-down look.
M.A.D.Editions

Each of the three versions of the M.A.D.1S ‘Grow Your Dreams’ is limited to 400 pieces, and as usual, will be available to purchase exclusively through a raffle on the M.A.D.Editions website. The raffle will take place starting on September 2 at 8 am EDT and lasting through September 8, with each color getting its own raffle.

You can enter the raffle for one, two or all three colors — it’s up to you. If selected, you’ll then get an email from M.A.D.Editions giving you the ability to buy the watch for CHF 3,200, which as of this writing converts to $3,985. However, that price does not reflect any taxes or tariffs, meaning the final price you pay could be significantly higher.

A modern wristwatch with a transparent case showcasing intricate internal gears. The watch features a blue and green bezel with the words "Drive," "Tour," and "Grow" visible on a blue cross-shaped structure inside the face. It has a bright blue strap embossed with a repeating floral or abstract pattern. The watch crown is silver and positioned at the top.M.A.D.Editions

M.A.D.Editions M.A.D.1S ‘Grow Your Dreams’

Specs

Case Size 42mm
Movement La Joux-Perret Cal. G101 automatic
Water Resistance 30m
About the Author:

Johnny Brayson is an editor at Gear Patrol mostly covering watches. He enjoys watches that are packed with blink-and-you’ll-miss-’em details and believes nearly every watch could stand to be a tad smaller.

Read More

, ,