Review: Foxtel Vs Foxtel Now

What’s the Difference Between Foxtel and Foxtel Now?

The Pay TV service Foxtel has the widest range of TV content in Australia. The entry level Entertainment Package offers 45+ channels that cover all bases from drama, news, and music to special channels for the kids. Other packages include movies, drama, and sports add-ons. Their Showcase channel has exclusive rights to HBO’s series, giving Australia access to much-acclaimed shows including Game of Thrones, Westworld, Veep, Silicon Valley, and others. The Box Sets channel allows viewers to binge watch their favourite shows as well — and if you’d rather watch a show right away, the new On Demand feature lets you stream entire seasons in high definition at no extra cost. Other shows and movies are available on demand for extra payment. The Sports Pack includes programming from ESPN as well as beIN Sports and three English soccer club channels in addition to Fox Sports’ own channels.

Foxtel Now, previously known as Foxtel Play, is Foxtel’s IPTV offering. They offer an Entry pack that contains Pop and Lifestyle while Drama, Movies, and Sport packs serve as the Premium pack offerings. All packs are also available for customers who don’t want to leave out any channels, which include Kids and Docos.

What Does Foxtel Offer?

Foxtel splits its channels into separate packages that can be added individually to the base Entertainment Pack, which is mandatory. You can also find bundles of packs and even the Platinum HD offering, which includes everything.

Pack/Channel/Bundle	Cost/Month	Highlights	Featured Shows
Entertainment (Base Pack)	$29	Fox8 UKTV Arena Universal Channel	Suits Roswell, New Mexico Siren
Sport	+$29	Fox Sports Fox Footy Fox League ESPN beIN Sports	NBA A-League Cricket
Drama	+$20	Showcase BBC First Box Sets	The Walking Dead Game of Thrones Outlander
Movies	+$20	Premiere Action Masterpiece Disney	Avengers: Infinity War Pacific Rim: Uprising Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Entertainment Plus	+$10	Comedy Channel SyFy E!	Future Man Keeping Up With the Kardashians Emerald City
Docos	+$10	National Geographic Discovery Channel History Channel	Outback Opal Hunters Mars Mateship: Australia & USA
Kids	+$10	Cartoon Network Nickelodeon Disney Channel	Marvel's Spider-Man Adventure Time 'Tomorrow' Nicky, Ricky, Dicky and Dawn
HD Upgrade	+$10	Crisp HD Picture

Foxtel’s base plan starts at $29/month with additional charges for the Premium Channel Packs. Going whole hog with the Platinum HD Pack containing 95 channels plus high definition is, of course, your best option. All rates are on a monthly direct debit plan. Do watch out for special offers though, as free or reduced-price installation and iQ4 is often offered as part of advertised bundles.

And What Does Foxtel Now Offer?

When subscribing to Foxtel Now, you’re also required to get the base pack at $25/month before you can purchase any of the premium packs — Drama, Sport, and Movies. While the packs share names with those in the hardware Foxtel service, not all the channels available on the iQ4 box have made the transition over to Foxtel Now.

Pack/Channel/Bundle	Cost/Month	Highlights	Featured Shows
Pop & Lifestyle (entry pack)	$25	Fox Showcase Fox8 Comedy Channel Arena E! TLC	True Detective Roswell, New Mexico Runaways The Walking Dead Grand Designs Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club
Drama (premium pack)	$10	BBC UKTV BBC First Universal Channel	Vanity Fair Luther The Little Drummer Girl
Sport (premium pack)	$29	Fox Sports Fox League Footy Play	NBA A-League Cricket
Movies (premium pack)	$20	Premiere Masterpiece Disney	Avengers: Infinity War Lady Bird Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
All Packs Bundle (including Kids & Docos)	$104	Disney Channel Nickelodeon Cartoon Network National Geographic Discovery Channel History Channel	Paw Patrol Blaze and the Monster Machines Bunk'd Coast Australia Mars Homicide Hunter

Foxtel Now starts at $25/month for the Entry pack, which is comprised of the Lifestyle and Pop packs. Add-on channel packs can be purchased with the entry pack as your access. You can include the Drama Pack at $10/month, Movie Pack is an additional $20/month, while the Sport Pack costs an additional $29/month. If you feel greedy and want everything on offer, it will cost $104/month for about 60 channels including the Kids and Docos Packs. Note that you can cancel your subscription anytime. There’s also a free 10-day trial for new subscribers.

Are There any Accessories for Foxtel Now?

Foxtel Now launched its own custom-design streaming box at the end of 2017, and for those that choose to go with the Foxtel Now option it’s an easy way to get Foxtel onto your screen in HD via your broadband connection — and it only costs $99.

The Foxtel iQ4 Experience

Foxtel Pay TV requires installing a set-top box, included in whatever package you sign up for. You can request an installation by Foxtel or do it by yourself.

The fee for the Foxtel iQ4 set-top box is at $125 (some bundles still include the older iQ3 model), though the equipment fee is sometimes waived along with the installation fee whenever there’s a promotion. It can record up to 345 hours of entertainment in SD or 172 hours of HD. A good electronic program guide (EPG) makes it easy to find and record your shows. Foxtel Now is more of an app than an EPG, but it’s just as simple to navigate and use. Foxtel’s catch-up service, Foxtel On Demand, is included with both.

Foxtel Now doesn’t require a set-top box, since you watch via the internet. You can access Foxtel Now on your PC, Mac, Telstra TV, Foxtel Now Box, mobile phone, or tablet, as well as Chromecast or Playstation 4, with content available in HD where possible. Meanwhile, the older version of the app, Foxtel Play, is still available on Xbox One, Playstation 3, and selected Smart TVs. See the list of Foxtel Now compatible devices here. Of course, they require a high bandwidth internet connection.

Foxtel Now offers a mobile app that lets you watch your favourite shows and movies on the go, from your mobile devices. Foxtel also offers a similar free app for iQ4 customers to watch their shows when away from home.

How to Access Foxtel and Foxtel Now

Foxtel Pay TV is available in all metro areas, however, access may be limited in remote areas. Foxtel Now is available anywhere you have a broadband connection.

Foxtel Now Device Compatibility

Foxtel Now is available on a wide range of devices.

Device	Does it work?
Computers (PC & Mac)	Yes (Chrome and Safari browsers only) (HD)
iOS and Android Phones & Tablets	Yes (HD)
Chromecast	Yes (HD)
Telstra TV	Yes (HD)
Apple TV	Via AirPlay Only (HD)
Foxtel Now Box	Yes (HD)
PlayStation 4	Yes (HD)
Xbox One	Yes
Playstation 3	Yes
Smart TVs	LG, Sony, Samsung

Foxtel Now is continuing to expand its compatibility range. Check back frequently to see new updates!

So, Which One Is Best For You — Foxtel or Foxtel Now?

At the entry package level, Foxtel’s Pay TV service definitely provides more value for your money — provided of course, that the service is available in your area. Otherwise, you can just opt for Foxtel Now.

If you like a broad range of channels to choose from, the Platinum HD package from Foxtel might be the best thing for you. Otherwise, if you’re not too particular about all the extra channels — or if either cable or satellite installation is not an option — then picking and choosing selected channel packs from Foxtel Now potentially works out to be more cost-effective.