It has been known for several months that Apple plans to release four iPhone 12 models this fall. And while much could change between now and the release of the new iPhones scheduled for this fall, we have just gotten our first clues.

The news arrives by way of PhoneArena, from South Korea's The Elec, and suggests familiar prices across the board for Apple's next phone. The Elec sat down with UBI Research analyst Chung-Hoon Lee, who offered insight into where he thinks each model's price will ultimately end up.

Lee estimates that the least expensive and smallest iPhone 12 - the 5.4-inch model - will start at $700, while the larger 6.1-inch variant will reportedly add a $50 premium. Meanwhile, the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro and 6.7-inch Pro Max, as they are unofficially named, could be $999 and $1099, respectively. This is the same as the current iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max.

In an interview with The Elec, Apple delves further into the difficulties of making these two less expensive models more affordable. All four upcoming iPhone models are said to have OLED panels, and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic is sure to limit sales, so Apple is having to keep costs lower than ever.

One possible way for Cupertino to do that, Lee explains, is to integrate the touch-sensitive layer on the phone's screen into the panel itself. However, Apple is struggling with several display suppliers at the same time, so it is unclear whether it will be able to meet its cost targets.

Thus, these prices, especially the $700 tag for the 5.4-inch iPhone 12, are certainly not final and could change depending on market conditions. Nevertheless, if Apple were to release a small iPhone with 5G at such a low price, it would certainly differentiate itself from companies like Samsung and OnePlus, which have recently focused on offering very expensive and very large 5G-connected models.

Since the release of the iPhone SE 2020, there seems to be a renewed interest in smaller phones, and perhaps this year is the right year for Apple to broaden its range of flagship models and offer a slightly more compact alternative than the existing 5.8-inch iPhone 11 Pro It is probably the right time.