AMD vs Nvidia
This is a subject that is very near and dear to my heart. I absolutely love graphics cards. Unlike CPU's, GPU's can have a very real difference in performace the more you spend. There's a gigantic leap in both graphical fedality and frames per second the more money you spend on a GPU.
AMD
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PROS:
- Better value/optimal price to performance on average
- Tend to have more vRAM
- FreeSync compatibility (this means cheaper monitors)
- Currently have better potential compatibility with DX12
- Slow to release drivers for new games at times
- Higher temps and require more power than their Nvidia counterpart to run
CONS:
Nvidia
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PROS:
- More power efficient than AMD cards
- Gamework's optimization(depends on game)
- Nvidia Geforce Experience - Auto optimization of game settings
- Shadowplay for low overhead to record and stream gameplay
- Slightly more expensive
- Not quite as fast when all things are the same
CONS:
There's a battle of the titans happening in the world of graphics cards. Red vs Green. In today's GPU market there really isn't a bad choice to be made. Again it begins with a few simple questions, whats you're budget and what's important to you?
Here's a video showing a bit of what I'm talking about.
WORKSATION
Unless you're doing high end multimeida creation or bitcoin mining. Video cards aren't always needed for a work computer. Most built in graphics are more than enough for most situations in terms of work computers. However if you ever did need a GPU for work related tasks, I linked a video to help exlain a few things.
AMD and Nvidia are months away from releasing new video cards on the market. Polaris on the AMD side and Pascal on Nvidia's side. They both have been very tight lipped on the performance of their graphics cards. They're both expected to fully support DX12. I still put together a list if you're ready to buy today. Mid-ranged video cards shouldn't change as far as price goes once the new cards are released. More than likely they will only effect the higher end video cards $300 and up.
Keep in mind that with graphics cards there is no real "end game" point. You can always upgrade to a higher quality.