Review was updated on 27th April, 2020
Whether you’re already a Foxtel subscriber or you’ve been browsing their site thinking about signing up, you’ve probably seen Foxtel Go mentioned. A free service that is included with every Foxtel plan at no extra charge, Foxtel Go lets you stream any of your subscribed channels live or on demand, on any computer or mobile device anywhere in Australia.
Foxtel Go Review
Foxtel Go is a companion app which works in tandem with your main Foxtel subscription, meaning you can’t sign up for it on its own. What you can do as a Foxtel subscriber, however, is use it as a way to access Foxtel’s content from whichever device you prefer to use. That means you can take your Foxtel with you wherever you go – on the train or bus, on your lunch break or relaxing in bed. Handy!
The app is a free extra with your Foxtel subscription – but how good is Foxtel Go, really? What devices will it work with? Does it show everything, or only a limited selection? How does it link with your Foxtel account – and does it have any special features that the others just can’t match? We’ve taken a close look at what content you can access with the app, how easy it is to use, and whether it’s worth the download. Read on to find out more!
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What is Foxtel Go?
There’s a bit of confusion when it comes to Foxtel Go and Foxtel’s other online streaming service Foxtel Now. And that’s understandable – the two services do share in common the ability to watch almost all of Foxtel’s channels at any time of the day or night. And they’re also streamed live via the internet, rather than through a dedicated cable. They even make use of the same app on smartphones and tablets. But the similarity ends there.
First, let’s talk about what Foxtel Go isn’t. Foxtel Go is not a service that you can subscribe to by itself. You can download the app for free, sure, but when you fire it up you’ll be presented with a prompt to enter your Foxtel account login details. That’s because the Foxtel Go App is a companion to the main Foxtel service itself, and requires an active Foxtel subscription to function. Foxtel Now, meanwhile, is a live-streamed version of the actual Foxtel subscription service that you pay monthly for. In a nutshell, if you want to watch Foxtel, you have two choices – subscribe to the cable/satellite service, or subscribe to Foxtel Now. Either of those will get Foxtel onto your TV screen at home.
Foxtel Go works either via apps for your mobile phone and tablet devices or through your computer’s web browser (you’ll need to be using Chrome, or Safari on Mac) – it’s the Foxtel you can have when you don’t have the Foxtel box physically in front of you. When you subscribe to Foxtel’s pay TV services, you automatically get access to Foxtel Go with all your subscribed channel packs available to stream. You can browse through live channels as easily as you would channel-surf at home.
Foxtel Now subscribers, meanwhile, can also use the Foxtel Go app to stream their subscribed channels on the go – and they can cast from the app to any Chromecast-compatible TV (satellite Foxtel users can only do this if subscribed to the Multiscreen add-on).
From a value point of view, it’s brilliant. For no extra money at all – yes, it’s completely free and included with your subscription – you can take your Foxtel with you on your smartphone or tablet, anywhere you go.Your access to Foxtel Go starts as soon as you sign up for Foxtel, too – so even while you’re waiting for your iQ box and satellite dish to arrive, you can start streaming!
What can you Watch on Foxtel Go?
One of the killer features of Foxtel Go isn’t one that you’d immediately think of – the ability to watch live streams of your favourite sports no matter where you are. Every Fox Sports channel is available on the app. So if you’ve got the Sports HD pack active on your Foxtel service, you automatically get access to those channels on your mobile devices. You don’t need to rush home to watch the footy or the Formula One if you’re out and about – just pull out your phone or tablet, fire up Foxtel Go and watch the action streamed live, anywhere you happen to be.
And that means access to live streams of dozens of the most-watched sports in Australia and around the world, including AFL and NRL, as well as Super Rugby, international and domestic cricket, the Big Bash League, A-League soccer, the Supercars, the Rugby 7’s and Wallabies, F1, NBA basketball, PGA golf, ATP tennis, UFC, MotoGP and much more.
And that’s just scratching the surface of what’s on offer, with 13 channels streaming live sports wherever they’re happening in the world, 24 hours a day. Don’t forget, you can also use the Foxtel Go app to tell your iQ box back at home to start recording any channel you’re watching at any time – so if that last quarter looks like being a nail-biter, you can capture it on your iQ and watch it when you get home in HD!
Check out the table below for the full list of channels that you can tune in to using the Foxtel Go app — completely for free — as long as you’re subscribed to these packs:
| Channel Pack | Channels Included | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Foxtel Plus | FOX8, BBC UKTV, Fox Arena, MTV, Universal, Fox Hits, Fox Funny, Fox Classics, Fox Sleuth, Fox Crime, Fox One, Fox Showcase, Lifestyle, TLC, E!, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Animal Planet, BBC First, BBC Earth, Nick Jr., Boomerang, MTV Hits, MTV Classic, Club MTV, CMT, Nick Music, Foxtel Arts, Foxtel Music, FOX Sports News, SKY Racing, SKY Thoroughbred Central, FOX News, SKY News, SKY News UK, SKY News Extra, SKY News Weather, BBC World News, CNN, CGTN, CGTN Documentary, NHK World, Aurora, Bloomberg TV, CNBC, Al Jazeera, RT, EXPO Channel, TVSN, ACCTV, Daystar, Sonlife, Hillsong, TRT World | Perry Mason, Run, Mrs America, Wentworth Redemption, Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted, What We Do in the Shadows |
| Sports HD Pack | FOX Cricket, FOX Footy, FOX League, FOX Sports 503/505/506/507, beIN Sports 1/2/3, ESPN, ESPN2, FOX Sports Ultra HD | NRL, AFL, 2020 MotoGP, Virgin Australia Supercars, 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship |
| Movies HD Pack | Premiere Movies, Kids Movies, Family Movies, Action Movies, Comedy Movies, Drama Movies, Thriller Movies, Hits Movies, Greats Movies, Romance Movies, Ultra HD Movies | Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Hustlers, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, Ad Astra |
| Favourites Pack | Crime+Investigation, History, The Comedy Channel, A&E, Nat Geo Wild, Lifestyle Home, Lifestyle Food, Fox SciFi, Box Sets, Discovery Turbo, Investigation Discovery | Titans Of The 20th Century, Jeffrey Dahmer: Cannibal Killer, The Redemption Project, Gino’s Italian Express |
| Kids Pack | Cartoon Network, CBeebies, Nickelodeon | SpongeBob SquarePants, Henry Danger, DC Super Hero Girls, Double Dare |
Compatible Devices and Apps
Once you download the free app, which is available for iPhone, iPad and Android devices – or head to the new Foxtel Go web site in your computer’s web browser – you then sign in with the same login that you use to access your Foxtel account online. You will have been given those details when you signed up for Foxtel, and it’s the key to your entire Foxtel account – so keep the details in a safe place.
Now here’s the good bit: you can watch Foxtel via Foxtel Go on two devices simultaneously, at the same time as someone watches Foxtel on the TV via their iQ box. And yes, they can be on different channels! That’s great news for, say, families with kids that want to watch the latest episode of Supergirl at the same inconvenient time that dad wants to watch the US Open. You don’t even need to be in the same house (or even the same part of the country) to do it, either, just as long as a maximum of two Foxtel Go streams are being watched at a time. There’s a limit of five registered devices that you can log into with your account (only two can stream at a time) but you can swap out a device for a new one any time you like.
For a complete list of compatible devices for the Foxtel Go app, check out the table below:
| Device | Available? | User Guide |
|---|---|---|
| PC/Mac | Yes | Web browser only (Chrome for PC; Chrome & Safari for Mac) |
| iOS Mobile Devices | Yes | Via native app (iOS 9.3.5 or above) |
| Android Mobile Devices | Yes | Via native app (Android 5 and above) |
| Google Chromecast | Yes | Via casting (only on Multiroom service) |
| Apple TV | Yes | Via AirPlay (only on Multiroom service) |
| Smart TVs | Yes | Via casting only (only on Multiroom service) |
Foxtel Go Features
When you load up the app or web site, you’re greeted with a screen of recommendations, and then can choose between watching live TV or selecting a show from the titles available on demand. What’s on offer for both is directly tied to the channel packages your home Foxtel service has access to; the channels and shows you can’t play display a “lock” symbol to make it crystal-clear what you can and can’t view. Handily, all the channels you do have access to are grouped together at the top of the list.
Live TV
For live TV, it’s as simple as tapping on the channel you want from the list. The program currently screening on each channel is right there in the list to make things nice and fast. Just tap and within seconds you’ve got live Foxtel in your hands, the show playing in a tiny window. Just turn your phone on its side (or on tablets and browsers, tap the full-screen icon at the bottom right of the video window) and the video flips to fill the screen so you can watch without distractions.
Remotely Record TV Shows
Another neat feature is the “iQ” icon on the show’s page as it plays. Tapping that lets you instantly command your iQ box at home to record the show. Yes, that’s right, you can actually record on your home PVR from anywhere in Australia where there’s internet access. This feature’s perfect for those times – and we’ve all done it – where you head out for the evening and suddenly realise you forgot to set the iQ to record Game of Thrones. Just fire up the Foxtel Go app, find the show in the list, and start it recording for you to watch when you get back home. It’s a brilliant feature.
Stream in HD on Foxtel Go
The good news is, you can stream in HD using the Foxtel Go app if your device supports it. But the app does an excellent job of scaling the streamed image to your screen’s size even on smaller devices, which can save data – you don’t want to be streaming HD on a cellular connection, even if you had a generous data cap, because the data rate required for HD would eat up your allowance in no time. It’s a good compromise between usability and quality, and we think they’ve got the balance right.
What are Foxtel Go’s Best Features?
Foxtel Go Plans and Pricing
We might have mentioned this a couple of times above, but if you missed it, here we go again. Foxtel Go is completely free! It comes with your Foxtel subscription, so it can’t be taken separately. But once you sign up – go directly to Foxtel Go!
Foxtel TV Plans
- iQ4 box & install fees waived
- 12 Month Contract
- Set-top Box Included
- 50+ channels
- Enjoy 130 complete drama series
- iQ4 box & install fees waived
- 12 Month Contract
- Set-top Box Included
- Netflix Standard Plan included
- 50+ channels
- No Lock-in Contract
- Set-top Box Included
- 50+ channels
- Enjoy 130 complete drama series
- No Lock-in Contract
- Set-top Box Included
- Multiscreen access
- Netflix Standard Plan included
- No Lock-in Contract
- Set-top Box Included
- Foxtel Plus & Movies HD
- Thousands of hours of movies
Last audited 07 July 2020
How to Contact Foxtel Go
If you’ve got any questions about how to use Foxtel Go, how to get it working on your device or to ask about which channels you have access to (or to add more channels to your Foxtel subscription), just give their friendly team a call on 1300 760 579 and they’ll point you in the right direction. The great thing about the Foxtel Go service, though, is how well designed it is – it just works, and chances are you’ll never need to talk to anyone to get set up and streaming on the go.
Foxtel Go Summary
You can’t get a better price than free, and Foxtel Go is exactly that – a totally free bonus on top of the Foxtel subscription you already pay for. It gives you a lot more flexibility about how, when and where you watch your Foxtel shows, and has the added bonus of working as a remote-recording control for your iQ box at home, making sure you never miss any of your favourite shows no matter where you are. The app itself is extremely well designed and runs perfectly on a wide variety of devices – it’s fast, responsive and easy to use, with playback of the live-streamed channels being smooth and flawless.
If you’ve got Foxtel, grab the Foxtel Go app for your mobile devices and give it a try. It won’t cost you a cent, and it might just make your entertainment options that much better.
