I think this might be a good alternative, the Panasonic 32LZ800 looks like a great screen (Ips Alpha panel.) although it is more expensive than your budget point. I don't know how it performs at low brightness.
Or maybe a 32" with 720p?
Mostly, I work at 1024 x 768 on a Sony G520.
I usually sit at an arm's length of the screen to fit the keyboard and the tablet. I hate struggling to read text and I don't like sitting too close to the screen. For long imaging work, I push it to 1600x1200.
I really like the opportunity of...
I've been looking around a long time for a 30", I think I will settle for he W3000H-BN because some stores carries them stock (I'm in Canada) , I can screen a good unit before buying it.
As somebody suggested it, I will try it using several shades of gray (0-25-20-75-100) to spot backlight...
The samsung has different lcd technology, some prefers the LG IPS Panel.
Viewing angles on the new samsung 30" panels are supposed to be quite good.
The best would be to go see a 30" Ips panel (Apple, Dell, LG, etc) and 30" Samsung panel (305t or a 30" Gateway) in person to see for yourself...