A dual-band handheld or mobile covering 2m and 70cm is the usual first radio. This guide isn't a product recommendation; it's a checklist of what matters in Australia. Most of it is buying advice rather than regulation, so where something is a rule, the source is linked.
1Check the band coverage
The Australian band edges are 144–148 MHz and 430–450 MHz (class licence). Some radios made for other markets stop short of 450 MHz or are locked to other countries' band edges. If you want to use hotspot simplex (441.800–442.000 MHz) or anything above 440 MHz, make sure the radio covers 440–450 MHz. Check the specifications for the exact model and version you're buying.
2Match the power to your licence
Foundation operators are limited to 10 W pX on 2m and 70cm. Standard operators can use up to 30 W pY on FM, and Advanced up to 120 W pY. A 50-watt mobile is perfectly usable on a Foundation qualification, but only if you turn it down to stay within your limit.
3Look for CTCSS and DCS
Many Australian repeaters need a CTCSS tone to open, listed in the Tone column of the WIA Repeater Directory (values such as 91.5, 88.5 or 146.2 Hz). Any radio you buy should encode and decode CTCSS, and DCS is good to have too.
4Narrow and wide FM
The band plan specifies analogue channels under 25 kHz on 2m and under 16 kHz on 70cm, with 12.5 kHz channels in the 2m Block C digital segment (WIA band plan). A radio with selectable 12.5 and 25 kHz bandwidth handles all of these cleanly.
5Decide on digital and APRS
D-STAR has a repeater network in Australia (see the D-STAR tutorials), and other digital modes such as DMR and C4FM are also in use. The sensible rule is to pick the mode your local repeaters actually use.
Built-in APRS and GPS are nice extras rather than essentials.
Icom's D-PRS position reporting runs over D-STAR. It isn't the same as AX.25 APRS on 145.175 MHz unless a gateway bridges the two.
6Equipment rules
The current class licence has no requirement for Foundation operators to use commercially-made equipment; that older condition is gone. Equipment must still meet the relevant device standards (ACMA).