LG Optimus F5: 4.3-inch 4G LTE mid-range phone with 5MP camera
When LG pulled the wraps off the Optimus F5 at Mobile World Congress in early 2013, the Korean manufacturer was chasing a specific slice of the smartphone market: buyers who wanted the speed of next-generation mobile data without paying flagship prices. The handset sat comfortably between entry-level Androids and the more expensive Optimus G Pro, offering a balance of screen size, processing capability, and 4G LTE access that suited commuters, students, and professionals who relied on their phone for email, navigation, and streaming throughout the day.
For Australian shoppers in 2013, the timing was right. Telstra had been pushing its 4G network aggressively across Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane, while Optus was expanding its LTE footprint in capital cities and regional centres. The Optimus F5 arrived as one of the more affordable ways to tap into that growing infrastructure, priced well below the Samsung Galaxy S4 or the iPhone 5 that dominated carrier shop windows at the time.
Design and construction
The LG Optimus F5 followed the design language LG had refined across its F-series, with a gently curved back panel and a textured finish that helped the phone sit securely in the hand. The 4.3-inch form factor made it compact enough for one-handed use, a trait that appealed to Australian users who often carried their phone in a pocket while commuting on trains from Hurstville to the Sydney CBD or across Melbourne's tram network. The device measured 126 x 64.5 x 9.3 mm and weighed around 131 grams, light enough to disappear in a bag but solid enough to feel substantial during extended calls.
LG offered the phone in a small selection of colours, including black and white variants, both of which suited the conservative tastes of corporate buyers. The physical layout placed the power button on the right edge and the volume rocker on the left, with a 3.5 mm headphone jack on the top edge and a micro-USB port on the bottom. The rear cover was removable, giving access to the battery, microSD card slot, and SIM tray. That last point mattered for Australian users who travelled between cities and wanted to swap SIMs between handsets or take advantage of prepaid data offers from different carriers.
Display and visual experience
The 4.3-inch IPS LCD screen ran at a qHD resolution of 540 x 960 pixels, which translated to roughly 256 pixels per inch. While that fell short of the 720p and 1080p panels appearing on flagships, it was a respectable middle-ground for the category and rendered web pages, photos, and video with reasonable sharpness. Colours leaned slightly cool out of the box, but viewing angles were wide enough that two people could comfortably watch a YouTube clip side-by-side on a Brisbane suburban train or during a long drive along the Pacific Highway.
Brightness levels were adequate for outdoor use, though direct Australian summer sun could wash out the panel at maximum settings. The Corning Gorilla Glass coating on the front helped protect against scratches from keys and coins, a practical consideration for users who tossed the phone into a backpack alongside a wallet, a book, and the day's packed lunch. For readers who wanted to catch up on news at a café in Adelaide's Rundle Mall or check social feeds during a break in Perth, the display performed reliably indoors and at modest brightness outdoors.
Hardware and performance
Inside, the Optimus F5 ran on Qualcomm's MSM8960 Snapdragon S4 Plus chipset with a dual-core Krait processor clocked at 1.2 GHz, paired with 1 GB of RAM. This was not a configuration designed for heavy multitasking or graphics-intensive gaming, but it handled the daily essentials with little fuss. Browsing in Chrome, scrolling through Facebook, sending emails, and running common productivity apps stayed smooth for the most part. Opening too many tabs in the browser could cause reloads, but for a mid-range device, the experience was competitive.
Storage came in at 8 GB internally, of which roughly 5 GB was available to the user after system files. The microSD card slot accepted cards up to 32 GB officially, and higher capacity cards often worked as well, providing room for music libraries, photo collections, and offline maps for road trips across the Nullarbor Plain. Adreno 225 graphics kept casual games running at playable frame rates, though more demanding 3D titles showed the limits of the hardware.
| Specification | LG Optimus F5 | Apple iPhone 5 | Nokia Lumia 720 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 4.3-inch IPS LCD, qHD | 4.0-inch IPS LCD, 640 x 1136 | 4.3-inch IPS LCD, WVGA |
| Processor | Snapdragon S4 Plus dual-core 1.2 GHz | Apple A6 dual-core 1.3 GHz | Snapdragon S4 dual-core 1.0 GHz |
| RAM | 1 GB | 1 GB | 512 MB |
| Rear camera | 5 MP, 1080p video | 8 MP, 1080p video | 6.7 MP, 720p video |
| Front camera | 1.3 MP | 1.2 MP | 1.3 MP |
| Battery | 2150 mAh, removable | 1440 mAh, non-removable | 2000 mAh, non-removable |
| Operating system | Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean | iOS 6 (upgradable) | Windows Phone 8 |
| 4G LTE | Yes | Yes | No (3G only) |
| Storage | 8 GB + microSD | 16/32/64 GB | 8 GB + microSD |
Camera system
The rear camera on the Optimus F5 used a 5-megapixel sensor with autofocus and an LED flash, capable of recording 1080p video at 30 frames per second. In good lighting, the camera produced decent shots with reasonable colour accuracy, useful for documenting a weekend market visit in Melbourne's Queen Victoria Market or capturing a sunset over Coogee Beach. Detail dropped noticeably in low light, and the small LED flash helped only at very close range, so indoor shots at restaurants or pubs came out soft and grainy.
The front-facing camera was a modest 1.3 megapixels, fine for video calls on Skype or quick selfies, but limited for anything more ambitious. LG's camera interface included several modes such as HDR, panorama, and continuous shot, accessible through a side drawer that kept the main shutter button uncluttered. Compared with the imaging pipelines of higher-end handsets of the era, including the iOS flagships Apple was shipping at the time, the F5 was clearly a step behind in pure image quality, but it served the needs of buyers who wanted a competent point-and-shoot without paying a premium.
Connectivity in the Australian market
One of the headline features of the Optimus F5 was its 4G LTE support, which made it attractive to Australian buyers looking to take advantage of the rapid network expansion occurring across the country. The phone supported LTE on the 1800 MHz band used by Telstra and Optus in capital cities, along with 3G HSPA+ fallback for regional areas where LTE had not yet rolled out. In practice, this meant users in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth could expect solid 4G speeds in the inner suburbs, with 3G coverage extending to most populated regional centres.
Beyond LTE, the phone included Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS with A-GPS, and NFC on some regional variants. The inclusion of NFC was forward-looking, since Australian retailers and transport operators were still in the early stages of contactless payment adoption at the time. Call quality was clear through the earpiece, and the phone held signal reliably on both Telstra and Optus networks during testing in suburban environments. The Australian Communications and Media Authority's regulations around device certification meant the Optimus F5 sold through official channels was approved for use on local networks, an important point for buyers concerned about warranty support and software updates tailored to regional carriers.
Battery life and software
The 2150 mAh removable battery inside the Optimus F5 was one of its practical strengths, particularly for Australian users who often spent long days away from a charger. With moderate use involving some browsing, a few calls, occasional GPS navigation, and periodic social media checks, the phone typically lasted a full working day. Heavy users who streamed video over 4G or played games extensively would find the battery draining faster, but the removable design meant carrying a spare was an option, a flexibility many sealed-body competitors did not offer.
Charging was handled through the micro-USB port on the bottom edge, and a full top-up from empty took roughly two and a half hours with the supplied charger. Power users in regional areas where wall sockets were not always within reach appreciated the swappable battery during camping trips in the Grampians or extended fishing weekends on the Murray River. Combined with Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and LG's relatively restrained customisation of the operating system, the battery performed respectably against more expensive rivals in the same generation.
The Optimus F5 was a sensible choice for Australian buyers who wanted modern connectivity, a comfortable screen, and dependable battery life without stepping into flagship pricing. It was well-suited to prepaid and postpaid customers on Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone plans, and its LTE support made it relevant as carriers continued to expand their high-speed networks throughout 2013 and 2014. Australian Consumer Law protections also applied to devices purchased through local retailers, giving buyers confidence in warranty support and repair handling. For shoppers browsing the mid-range section of carrier websites, the Optimus F5 deserved consideration alongside the Samsung Galaxy Express and the HTC One SV, offering a balanced package for everyday use. Anyone ready to explore more smartphone options across different platforms and price points can browse the full catalog at newmobilearrivals.com for detailed launch coverage, reviews, and buying deals relevant to the Australian market.