Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box 8K, Syncs up to 10 Hue Lights with Video Games, Movies, and Music, Requires Hue Bridge, Supports Dolby Vision HDR10+, Control with Hue App

I was a little hesitant to upgrade at first because the original Hue Sync Box was already good, but after getting a new TV I decided to try this one — and the difference was immediate. Sync is noticeably faster, color accuracy is better, and everything feels smoother and more responsive. It integrates perfectly with my PlayStation, movies, and TV content, and it plays extremely well with my Sony TV. I use it constantly and honestly never turn it off anymore. In my setup I have eight lights connected: Play Bars, a Bloom, multiple A16 bulbs, and even an Ellipse Edison bulb. All of them respond instantly and stay perfectly in sync with no issues. Whether I’m watching something light and casual or diving into a dark movie or intense game, the lighting adapts beautifully to the mood. It even works as functional ambient lighting when I’m not actively paying attention to it. Setup was easy, features are well thought out, and gaming performance is surprisingly smooth and immersive. At first it takes a minute for your eyes to adjust when you start using synced lighting, but once you’re dialed in it becomes completely natural. It’s definitely expensive, but this is a true premium upgrade and absolutely worth it if you’re already invested in the Hue ecosystem.

I recently bought the Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box 8K on Prime Days Sale and paired it with my Hue Bloom and OmniGlow lights as TV accent lighting and it works perfectly! The colors sync beautifully with what’s on screen, creating a really immersive experience for movies and games. One of the best things is that it now supports 8K 60 fps and 4K 120 fps, so I can finally enjoy my PS5 Pro with full performance and responsive via ambience lighting on with no noticeable latency at all. It feels super smooth and immersive. What I also love is how functional it is. The Sync Box has 4 HDMI inputs, which freed up 3 HDMI ports on my TV since I can now plug all my devices directly into the box. Setup was simple, and switching between inputs is fast and seamless. If you already have Hue lights, this box really takes your setup to another level. It’s a bit pricey but totally worth it for both the convenience and the incredible ambiance it adds!

We have been very happy users of the original 4K version of this product for the last five years. It worked flawlessly . . . until it died. Given that we’d had two of them in five years, you could say they weren’t made for the long term. That said, we really enjoyed these on almost a daily basis as part of our whole Hue ecosystem. After returning from vacation, our latest one wasn’t working. The TV signal would just cut out and behave erratically. Once we determined the Sync box would need to be replaced, we learned ours had been discontinued, and we would need to pay significantly more for this newer 8K version. So we bit the bullet and did it. We stream everything through our Apple TV 4K. After hooking up the new Hue Sync 8K, the picture just blinked constantly, like so many other users complaining about flickering. No matter which HDMI we used on the TV or the Hue Sync, it only blinked faster or slower. It was literally unusable. Customer service was of little help, and we quickly ran out of options. I bought all-new 8K HDMI cables throughout, just in case, but it made no difference. I returned this box to Amazon and ordered a replacement. The problem was the same with the replacement. Then I read that some people were having success with using an HDMI splitter for gaming, so I paid another $50 for the needed HDMI splitter. It took quite a bit of configuring (not for the tech-adverse) on both the EDID settings and also the Apple TV settings, but we were able to get a signal and make the lights work. However, it caused havoc with our sound system, causing confusion for the TV in picking the proper audio output, and also caused the TV to turn itself back on after powering down the Apple TV. After a week of fiddling, it was just too much of a headache. I cannot recommend this Sync box to anyone, much less those using an Apple TV. Phillips has dropped the ball with this product – it is just not ready for market. Instead, we bought the Govee HDMI 2.1 Sync Box 2 and had it hooked up within minutes. Works just like our old Hue Sync, was cheaper, and the app isn’t bad either! Govee for the win!

Cost aside, this technology is really impressive. It works perfectly with all our Philips Hue lights (and Alexa), especially the gradient TV strip light, which I ordered before I realized I needed the Sync Box to sync it to my TV. So then we got the Sync Box, and I realized that it doesn’t support Smart TV apps - I almost gave up at this point. But then I tried using it with our Amazon Fire Stick, and it works PERFECTLY. It’s like magic. We have some pendant lighting in our kitchen that I added to the “entertainment scene” for movie nights, along with the tv gradient strip, a bloom lamp and another Hue lightbulb/lamp in our living room. The sync box has 4 hdmi ports, and can support computers, phones, soundbars, cable boxes, almost anything you can plug into hdmi. The fire stick is an incredibly cheap device compared to the $500+ I had invested in the TV lights and sync box, so it’s funny that was the solution. Worth it!

While expensive, worth the price. Really changes the experience watching tv or playing games. Comes with multiple inputs and setting up your hue lights is easy and adjusting the lights are also easy

Pros: 1. Set up is very easy, some YouTube tutorials are plain wrong & unnecessary complicate. The set up video in Best Buy is correct. 2. Works very well with my not new Samsung TV, Apple TV 4K & Hue wall washer pair. 3. It’s a fun gadget, this is important. I’d think gamers would be delighted. Cons: It is pricey, set me back $$$ sync box and wall washer pair. Hue quality & user interface are top notch.

Estoy muy feliz con la compra de Hue Play HDMI SYNC BOX 8K. Me llegó hoy, lo pedí la semana pasada aquí a Colombia, poco a poco me he ido haciendo mis luces hue. Es una adicción una vez empiezas y la verdad estaba asustado con los comentarios recientes de las personas aquí …. Lo instale y fue súper fácil he intuitivo. Se actualizó solo y listo conecte mi Apple TV 4K a el Sync Box, y el Sync Box q mi LG C1 65’. Y todo ha sido perfecto!!!! Nada de retrasos, nada de idas de imágenes. Estoy feliz. El único pero hasta ahora y es algo para criticar a esta marca EL CABLE HDMI que viene incluso en la caja es MUY CORTO. para un producto tan caro deberían invertir y consentir al cliente. Se ve que ahorran en detalles. Pero de resto feliz.

This is working perfectly with my Apple TV and LG OLED TV and fixes all the problems I had with the old unit. The 1st generation 4K box was plagued with problems, including frequent crashes that would briefly cut the video signal to the TV. I also had to run the old box in "Enhanced Compatibility" to work properly, which noticeably degraded the quality of the video signal. All of that has been completely resolved with the new 8K box. Very glad I ignored the negative reviews and made the upgrade.