The HDMI Sync Box itself costs $230, and that’s only for starters. The effect is impressively immersive given the Sync Box’s color accuracy and low latency, although you’ll have to deal with a somewhat complex setup process, not to mention the lack of a physical remote or any support (yet) for third-party universal remotes.Īnother issue is cost.
#Philips hue sync box sale tv#
Indeed, this device does precisely what it says: It syncs the images on your TV screen with your Hue lights by processing the video signals that arrive through your home theater’s HDMI cables. C’mon Hue make that HDMI 2.1 Sync Box happen to pair with the best gaming TVs.Not everyone wants pulsing lights around their TV screen while watching videos or playing games, but if you do, the Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box is currently the best way to make it happen. Throw in an extra $299/£185 for the 75-inch Hue Play Gradient Lightstrip I pair with my 77-inch C2 OLED, and all this creative color has hit my tattered bank balance hard.īut for this ambient light-loving addict, the prospect of playing games at 4K 120fps while simultaneously syncing the colors of glorious virtual worlds through Hue Play gear would be worth the assault to my wallet. Not that this is likely to be a cheap solution – the HDMI 2.0 Sync Box already costs $250/£230. If Philips Hue was to release an HDMI 2.1 version of the Sync Box that supported 4K 120Hz passthrough with Variable Refresh Rate, all my future-proofed gaming prayers would be answered. Still, having to regularly switch HDMI cables when choosing between games that support 4K 120Hz and those that are limited to 60Hz (that I want to sync the colors of) is annoying. Is this a First World Sophie’s Choice moment deserving of the tiniest violin yet conceived by theoretical physics? Of course. Here's the Hue Play box that hides beneath your TV. Sure, all those extra frames makes garotting an ogre smoother than ever, but it also meant I could no longer mimic the icy blues of Kratos’ frigid Midgard via my Sync Box and lightstrip. To hit this buttery performance, though, I had to bypass the HDMI 2.0 limitations of the Sync Box, instead using a different, hideously long HDMI 2.1 cable that I plugged into a different output on the back of my LG C2 OLED. With High Frame Rate enabled, Ragnarok regularly runs between 90-120fps. I recently completed last year’s excellent God of War: Ragnarok on PS5, and because I chose to plump for the High Frame Rate mode, I was forced into an annoyingly fiddly cycle of regularly switching out HDMI cables. While the lack of 120Hz passthrough at 4K isn’t a game-breaker for the Hue Play Sync Box, it does lead to compromises.
This means it’s restricted to 4K/60Hz signals, or 120Hz at 1440p.
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With more and more PS5 and Xbox Series X games supporting frame rates of 120 at 4K, the slightly ageing Sync Box’s flaw is revealed: it doesn’t support HDMI 2.1. There’s a catch when it comes to next-gen consoles, though. Whether having my corneas singed by searing reds in frantic games of Rollerdrome or feeling the warmth of The Witcher 3’s perpetual autumnal tones expanded beyond the dimensions of my LG C2, it’s a terrific effect that makes both games and movies feel more three-dimensional. And it’s with games that you really see the best of the Sync Box and lightstrip. I tend to go for the lowest ‘Subtle’ preset when watching movies, then ramp it up to High when playing games. Thanks to the Hue Sync app, you can tweak the intensity of the color-syncing tech. A good example of the effect in action? Watch The Matrix, and a constant array of glassy greens will illuminate the wall behind your TV to match the Wachowski’s masterful, bullet-dodging color palette. Whether you’re playing the best PS5 games or watching one of the best Netflix movies, the Hue Play Sync Box and Hue Gradient Lightstrip heighten immersion at every turn.
An Ambilight or Hue Play system is great for adding atmosphere beyond the bounds of your TV.
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