Signify, the company behind the Philips Hue Light, announced a new Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box in September, bringing a capability that many Hue users have wanted for years now: the ability to sync the Hue Light with content playing on the TV for immersive home entertainment. experience.
There’s already a Hue Sync app that lets Hue lights be tuned to Macs and PCs, but it’s limited to computers. In the past, “12 Monkeys” and “Sharknado 2” also had limited run light syncing features that were pre-programmed, but before the Hue Play Sync Box, there was no easy solution for on-the-fly syncing. The color of light for the contents of a TV set.
The Hue Play Sync Box is a simple black box that plugs into a TV with an HDMI cable It has one power port (and an included power supply) along with four HDMI ports designed to accommodate HDMI devices like Apple TV, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and more. It’s just a black box, and nothing special to look at, as it’s meant to be stuck in an entertainment unit.
Any console or set-top box can be plugged into the Hue Play Sync Box, allowing it to analyze colors and tune them into a Hue light setup, changing colors and brightness to match the content on the TV screen. The box is basically sending the video signal to the TV and detecting the colors.
Setting up Hue Sync was as simple as plugging in my TV, plugging my devices into the box, connecting it to my existing Hue Bridge (on a 2.4GHz network) and then downloading and opening the dedicated Hue Sync app. Using the Hue Sync Box requires a separate Hue Sync app and does not work with the standard Hue app.
In fact, when Hue Sync is turned on (which can be done in the Hue Sync app) you can’t control your lights through the standard Hue app. While most Hue products appear in HomeKit, Hue Sync isn’t a HomeKit–device, it’s a standalone option just for Hue-branded lights.
The Hue Play Sync Box requires an existing Hue light setup (and Hue Bridge) around a television set and works best with the Hue Play, Hue Lightstrip, The Hue Go and other Hue light bulbs that are deeply saturated and offer rich the color
This technically works with any Hue light, but some older bulbs don’t have particularly saturated blues and greens, which can detract from the setup. Setting up Hue Sync requires defining an entertainment area, which essentially selects the lights you want to change in sync with the colors on the TV.
I had a Hue Lightstrip, a Hue Go, and a few standard Hue bulbs near the TV in my office, which worked well, though I imagine it would be better with a lightstrip and a few Hue Play light bars.
There are three different sync modes for videos, music and games with three intensity levels: fine, medium, high and extreme Fine and moderate are the smoothest with fewer transitions that are ultimately less distracting. In high and extreme mode, colors change quickly and depending on what you’re looking at, it can be a bit confusing.
In general, I prefer to look with the setting on Subtle for regular use because the other settings tend to shift colors too much. I’ve experimented with high and extreme modes for a few color movies, and it can make a movie more fun, but they’re not settings I want to use all the time.
I’m not entirely sure what the difference is between video, music and game modes, as there’s no clear explanation in the app, but selecting them slightly changes the colors between the modes. However, using sync mode requires activation in the app, although there is an option to do so on the box itself if it’s nearby (mine is behind the TV so the app is handy). There is no automatic activation mode.
There is an option to set a minimum preferred brightness level and an important setting in the “Advanced” section for minimum brightness. The minimum brightness setting should be enabled to keep the light level to a minimum, so that the light does not turn off completely when the screen shows a black scene. During my testing, I found that there were a surprising number of completely black scenes that caused the lights to go out, which is confusing.
A lot of TV shows have a lot of white/yellow colors, so there are situations where the Hue lights don’t show a lot of color. It certainly works best and looks best with shows and movies that have lots of colorful scenes, but subtle white light changes can make what you’re watching more immersive.
I’ve been testing Hue Sync for a few weeks now, and I haven’t noticed much lag, if any. My Hue lights change pretty much instantaneously that the color on the TV screen changes.
I initially used it on a 4K Sony TV with my Apple TV 4K and it worked great. Everything was smooth and seamless, and colors were detected and transferred regardless of the content I was viewing
On my Nintendo Switch, Hue Sync worked fine. I tested it with Link’s Awakening, and it had some neat video game features like a flash of light whenever I attacked an enemy, with colors that matched the game environment.
I also tested with my PS4 Pro and had no problem getting the syncing features to work properly With both my Nintendo Switch and my PS4 Pro, I haven’t seen any lag issues with color changes. As mentioned above, it comes with six active lights and a 4K TV (without Dolby Vision).
There’s an automatic switching feature (enabled in Settings) that swaps between different HDMI inputs when a console or Apple TV is activated, which worked well for me, but switching via my remote didn’t (since everything is technically routed through my TV). (HDMI port) so any manual switching between inputs needs to be done via the app.
Unfortunately there were a few cases where the automatic switching feature didn’t work as expected (mostly with my PlayStation 4) and I had to use the app
Based on multiple reviews of the Hue Play Sync Box, some users have had issues with devices routed through sound bars and receivers (though it’s supposed to work), so do a deeper investigation before buying to make sure it works with your specific setup. may be required. . It doesn’t work with built-in smart TV apps, so you’ll need an Apple TV, Fire Stick, Roku, or similar, to be aware of. Content has to go through the box to the TV to work.
The Hue Sync Play Box supports 4K at 60Hz and HDR 10, but it doesn’t support HDR10+ or Dolby Vision, so if you have a TV that uses HDR10+ or Dolby Vision, it might not be something you want to invest in. . Passthrough is supported so you can still watch HDR10+ and Dolby Vision content, but it can’t detect them to create lighting effects.
bottom line
The Hue Play Sync box is expensive and has some bugs and issues that need to be worked out, but I think people who have invested in a Hue Light for their entertainment system will enjoy what the box has to offer.
It’s unfortunate that it doesn’t work with Dolby Vision and HDR10+ because I suspect there’s a good amount of overlap between HDR10+/Dolby Vision capable devices and those with Hue setups that would make the Hue Play Sync Box worthwhile, but those with limitations For those who can work, it’s a great way to immerse yourself in TV shows, movies, video games, and music.
The setup was easy for me, but I have a simple TV setup without a sound bar and other additions, so there may be more complications involved and should be aware before buying. Overall, I think a lot of people who like Hue lights will be happy to have this option to sync content, and I’m hoping some bug fixes and improvements will make the Hue Play Sync Box a more seamless experience in the future.
How to buy
The Hue Play Sync Box can be purchased from the Hue website or from Best Buy for $229.99.
