Three of the four major telcos in Australia have 4G coverage available, with Vodafone beginning the rollout of its network this month.
![](https://www.cnet.com/a/img/resize/9af4c422cd9a25152e55e1486a3d8e338ae8e51b/hub/2013/06/03/f505b200-871d-11e3-9955-14feb5ca9861/lg-optimus-f5_1.jpg?auto=webp&width=644)
(Credit: LG)
However, 4G functionality has tended to stay in the realm of the higher-end smartphone market.
With the Optimus F5, LG is hoping to reach a wider audience, with low-cost prepaid and postpaid offerings from both Optus and Virgin.
The phone itself has a 4.3-inch qHD IPS display, along with a dual core Snapdragon S4 running at 1.2GHz.
The F5 runs the Jelly Bean variant of Android (4.1.2) but also has a number of the software add-ons from other LG phones, such as quick memo, multitasking and video editing.
On Optus, the Optimus F5 can be bought for AU$299 outright, or $0 upfront on the AU$35/month plan, with a total cost of AU$840 over 24 months.
Over on Virgin, the F5 is $0 upfront on the AU$29/month plan, with a total cost of AU$696 over 24 months.
The Optimus F5 is the first of LG’s F series of handsets in Australia, with more models arriving later in the year.