I got a $460 used RTX 3080 a week or two ago. I was skeptical, but I benchmarked her and she runs exactly at spec! 😁
I know $460 isn't chump change in this economy, but the card still sells new for $799.99, and used it's still easily $550-650 so I think I did alright 🤷‍♂️
Like everyone in here is saying tho; it's bewildering what people are willing to pay for high end specs.
This is my first technical 'high end' gpu purchase and with how the market is looking; I'll be holding onto her for a loooooong time before my next upgrade. And even then I'll be seeking the used market.
I was getting by fine with a used GTX 1650 Super before this that played most of the indie titles I like no problem, and most every recent release at 1080p medium/high settings (some games did run horribly however and my rig was starting to show signs of age, but most of those games I could turn a setting or few down and she'd be running like a dream again).
I only got this to play Elden Ring at 1440p with a decent FPS and to go back and play the meme of a game Cyber Punk since I payed for it and haven't touched it since release.
Overall tho if I wasn't able to snag a decent price like I did; I woulda stood with that 1650. I had a bond with that card; it was oddly fun seeing what games she could play and tuning the settings to fit her spec everytime I launched up a new title. That and there's a different level of satisfaction you get when you kick the enemy teams ass on mid/potato spec computers. It's like a double ego boost for yourself. 'I'm so good at the game I could beat you with 15-30fps' 😬😂
Edit: To go more off what you were saying tho; more people definitely need to consider AMD. I had a RX 580 I no longer needed that I gave to my sister for graphic design; and it still holds up nicely at 1080p medium/high with modern games in 2022.
If I didn't give that to her cause I scored another rig with that 1650 I mentioned for the low; I woulda still been using that.
AMD > Nvidia when it comes to buying new. But if you can buy used and get a deal on an Nvidia card; don't feel like that's a bad option. They're great cards for gaming; just a tad overpriced putting it mildly.
I will say tho; most AMD products are moreso better in raw specs which only translate to gains in performance in environments like rendering software and synthetic benchmarks.
It's kinda the reason why people still lean Nvidia/Intel if they can get their hands on em when they're tryna build a gaming rig... well that and historically 'better' driver support. But that's subjective and AMD seems to be doing a better job over the years supporting older GPU's so that point can be taken with a grain of salt.
All that being said; AMD is a great alternative for the price to performance they offer. Increasingly so because of the price gouging companies like Nvidia are guilty of.