While it's widely rumored that Apple will release its newest iPhone on September 21, its largest competitor, Samsung, is ready to go head-to-head with the technology giant.

With a retail price of $299, the South Korean manufacturer is working hard on a mini-version of the Galaxy S3 to seriously compete with Apple's new iPhone. The company clearly wants buyers to think twice before buying the iPhone 5. And this just might be the ace up Samsung's sleeve.

The design of the Samsung Galaxy S set the tone for all of the Samsung Galaxy series smartphones that followed, with the Galaxy S2 and Galaxy S3 adopting a similar form factor. In keeping with Apple's strategy of design evolution, rather than revolution, Samsung's new handset releases are expected to look and feel a lot like their predecessors.

Evidently, Samsung is planning a major attack against all things Apple. The world's largest mobile phone maker wants to position itself against the upcoming iPhone 5 with a low-budget version of its flagship model Galaxy S3. Sammobile reports that Samsung plans to release a Galaxy SIII mini model this year, a new Android smartphone with a dual-core processor, a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a four-inch super AMOLED display at WVGA resolution.

The suggested retail price for the Galaxy S3 Mini is expected to be just $299. As for the iPhone 5, which is also expected to have a four-inch display, users are expected to have to pay around $800 (with no contract). Other than the previously noted specs for the Galaxy S3 Mini, not much else is known at this point, and there are no images of the device.

The Galaxy S3 Mini is not the only opponent of the new iPhone 5 on which Samsung is working. Reportedly, there is also a plus variant of the Samsung Galaxy SII, which will pack a 4.52-inch AMOLED touch screen along with an 8 megapixel rear facing camera with LED flash, a front facing camera, a 1.5GHz Exynos dual core processor, 1GB RAM, 16GB storage and microSD expansion, run Android Ice Cream Sandwich, and have a price tag between $500-700, however one must also stipulate that none of this has been confirmed.

Both devices are expected to see release before Christmas. Some analysts say they could be presented as early as late August at the IFA. Which, if Samsung keeps to its timing, will mean the company has four handsets to seriously challenge the upcoming new iPhone: the Samsung Galaxy S3, Samsung Galaxy Note 2, Samsung Galaxy S2 Plus, and the Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini? And this will mean Samsung has an AMOLED phone for every price level.