Many people make fun of the "Apple tax" that Apple imposes on its products, but if the latest iPhone 12 rumors prove to be true, it will be Samsung's flagships that look overpriced.

Earlier this week, leaked information revealed possible pricing for the iPhone 12 lineup, which would start at a few hundred less than Samsung's Galaxy S20. even the iPhone 12 Pro Max is priced at $1, 000 less than Samsung's Galaxy S20 Ultra. It will be priced much lower than the $400 price tag. And this will put additional pressure on Samsung, which is already struggling with sales due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Apple analyst John Prosser says that based on his sources, the entry-level iPhone 12 will be priced at $649. And that's with 5G connectivity, an OLED display, and two rear cameras. Given that the current iPhone 11 starts at $699, this would be a super aggressive price.

The main difference between this iPhone 12 and the iPhone 11 is the screen size: the entry-level iPhone 12 would have a 5.4-inch display while the iPhone 11 is 6.1 inches. However, Apple is also expected to release another iPhone 12 model with a 6.1-inch display for $749. This would be $50 more than the current iPhone 11.

Meanwhile, Samsung's Galaxy S20 with a 6.2-inch OLED display, three rear cameras, and 5G starts at $999. This means that the iPhone 12 could conceivably be $350 cheaper than Samsung's entry-level flagship model, and the iPhone 12 with a larger screen could be $250 cheaper.

Samsung's Galaxy S20 has not fared much better, even without competition from the iPhone 12. According to a PCMag report citing data from M Science, "Sales of the Galaxy S20 series have been significantly below those of the S10 and S9 in the same number of weeks since launch The Galaxy S10 sold 400,000 units per week in the U.S., while the S20 has not topped 200,000 units in any given week."

So what about the more premium iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max? According to Jon Prosser's tweet, the iPhone 12 Pro with a 6.1-inch display, three cameras, and LiDAR sensor is priced at $999, while the more iPhone 12 Pro Max with a larger 6.7-inch screen will be priced at $1,099. In other words, despite the addition of 5G, the Pro version of Apple's iPhone may be priced the same this time around.

By comparison, Samsung's Galaxy S20 Plus, with its 6.7-inch display and quad camera including a time-of-flight sensor, starts at $1,199. And the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, with a 6.9-inch display and a powerful Space Zoom camera with up to 100x digital zoom, has a very high starting price of $1,399. The S20 Ultra has up to 16GB of RAM, while the S20 Plus has up to 12GB.

In other words, if the pricing rumors prove true, the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max will cost $200 and $300 less than the Galaxy S20 Plus and Galaxy S20 Ultra, respectively. And that means that Samsung may be forced to lower the price of its flagship smartphones to compete with the iPhone 12 lineup.

Is there a "Samsung tax" on Samsung's premium phones? I wouldn't go that far, but the arrival of the iPhone 12 could be a very rude awakening for the company.