The new iPhone SE is the smallest and most affordable Apple phone you can buy. Here are 5 types of people it's perfect for.

If you don't like the idea of unlocking your iPhone with your face and would prefer to stick with Touch ID, the iPhone SE is your only option.

Face ID allows you to unlock your iPhone and authenticate Apple Pay purchases by scanning your face. It's available on the iPhone X and later, and it works by projecting and analyzing more than 30,000 invisible dots to create a depth map of your face. Apple has also touted Face ID's security, saying that the chances of a random person unlocking your iPhone by looking at it are about one in 1 million.

But if you still prefer Touch ID — perhaps you find it more convenient than having to lift up your phone to look at it each time you want to unlock it — you may be pleased with the iPhone SE.

The iPhone SE is the only iPhone Apple currently sells that still has a home button. If keeping the home button is a priority, the SE is the model you'd want to consider.

Apple's newest iPhones no longer have a button and instead require you to navigate back to the home screen by swiping up from the bottom of the screen. It's a simple gesture, but one that does take some getting used to if you're switching to a home button-less iPhone for the first time.

Eliminating the home button has brought some benefits, however. Apple has been able to eliminate the bezels on more recent iPhone models and expand the size of the screen without making the phone too much larger. The first iPhone to have this new design was the iPhone X in 2017.

Finding a smartphone with a screen smaller than five inches is a difficult, if not impossible, task. But if you're looking for something that's more compact than most of the iPhones and Android phones available today, the iPhone SE is worth checking out.

At 5.22 ounces and 0.29 inches thin, it's lighter and slimmer than the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro.

And of course, it's shorter and less wide, too: the iPhone SE measures 5.45" by 2.65", while the iPhone 11's dimensions are 5.94'' by 2.98'' and the iPhone 11 Pro's are 5.67'' by 2.81''. That may not sound like a huge discrepancy, but it's noticeable when holding the phones.

If you love your iPhone 6S but are struggling with slow performance after nearly five years of use, the iPhone SE might be a good choice for you.

The iPhone SE is about the same size as the iPhone 6S. But it comes with a range of improvements compared to that phone, including:

• A higher resolution front-facing camera
• Apple's newest chip, the A13 Bionic
• A more durable glass and aluminum design that's water resistant
• More storage capacity at the base level
• Wireless charging
• The Portrait Mode camera feature

Of course, you'll have to sacrifice your headphone jack and instead opt for wireless earbuds or the Lightning EarPods that come in the box.

If you have anything newer than an iPhone 7, the iPhone SE probably isn't for you. It's too similar to the iPhone 8 to justify a $400 upgrade.

The bottom line is: If you're comfortable with your iPhone 6 or 6S but are in need of an upgrade, the iPhone SE could be the right fit.

The most obvious reason to opt for the iPhone SE over Apple's other models is its price. At $400, it's $200 cheaper than the $600 iPhone XR, $300 cheaper than the $700 iPhone 11, and $600 cheaper than the $1,000 iPhone 11 Pro.

Data suggests there's demand for less expensive smartphones. The iPhone XR was the most popular smartphone in the world in the third quarter of 2019, according to Counterpoint Research. A study from NPD Group found in 2019 that only 10% of consumers were paying more than $1,000 for their smartphones.

The iPhone SE could also be an ideal option for parents looking for an inexpensive iPhone to purchase for their child for the first time.