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I do not think having a sample available should lead to a higher price. I don't know how many people read more than a couple of pages of a sample at Smashwords; I know that I do not have the patience to do so. I read the story synopsis and if it interests me, I read some of the sample. I usually read the first 2-3 pages then skip 50 or so pages to check out another page or two, and then do it once more. I want to be done checking the sample in less than 5 minutes.
What I'm looking for in the sample is whether or not the author can put 2 sentences together correctly and for spelling/grammar errors. If I found the synopsis interesting and the pages I sampled in good shape, I then consider purchasing the book. Here price comes into play. If I am familiar with the author, I'll pay more, but lacking that familiarity, I really am reluctant to pay more than $1.99, possibly $2.99, for the book.
What would probably be helpful to authors at Smashwords is if Smashwords could tell authors that a reader read x number of sample pages and spent y amount of time doing so. I suspect (but obviously do not know) that few readers devote much time to reading the free sample.
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