New Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box Lets You Sync Your Lights to Your Apple TV - MacRumors
Skip to Content

New Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box Lets You Sync Your Lights to Your Apple TV

by

Signify today announced a new device for its Philip Hue line of lights, debuting the Hue Play HDMI Sync Box, designed to allow Hue users to sync their lights to their home entertainment systems.

The Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box is designed to connect between a television set and HDMI devices like the Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, video game consoles, and Blu-Ray players with the purpose of syncing lights with TV shows, movies, games, and music.

philipshuesync
Signify says the box will work with any HDMI device that you have to take your content "to the next level with surround lighting." You can connect up to four HDMI devices to the Sync Box, and swap between them as needed when watching TV, gaming, and more.

The Sync Box is able to automatically switch between each device depending on which one is in use, so there's no need to worry about fiddling with settings every time you use a different device.

philipshuesyncbox2
The Sync Box is compatible with all color-capable Philips Hue light bulbs, fixtures, and light bars that are paired to a Hue bridge. Up to 10 color-capable lights can be synced to whatever content is being played.

"People love to escape the pressures of everyday life by getting lost in their entertainment," said Jasper Vervoort, Business Leader, Home Systems & Luminaires, Philips Hue at Signify. "We are proud to present the new Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box and give them a simple way to make that possible. Philips Hue users can now easily connect the color-capable lights in their room with their home entertainment systems, taking their movie- and TV-watching, listening and gaming experience to a completely new level."

There is a dedicated Philips Hue Mobile Sync app that works with the Sync Box, allowing users to control and personalize the lighting experience. Brightness, speed, and intensity of the lighting effects can all be tweaked, and there are options to configure the default settings to better suit your needs.

philipshuesyncapp
You can get the Philips Hue Play Sync Box for $229.99 starting in October, but it is available for pre-order from the Hue website today.

Top Rated Comments

GIZBUG Avatar
87 months ago
$229 dollars!?!?!?
Are you serious? And doesn’t support HDR10+ or Dolby Vision? Pass
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
87 months ago
$229 dollars!?!?!?
Are you serious? And doesn’t support HDR10+ or Dolby Vision? Pass
$229 is ridiculous.

$59...absolutely. $79...sure. $99, yeah I suppose.

$229??? No way.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oneMadRssn Avatar
87 months ago
"The device supports 4K 60Hz and HDR10 at launch, but it doesn’t support HDR10+ or Dolby Vision, two key standards for higher picture quality." -The Verge ('https://www.theverge.com/2019/9/17/20864953/tv-light-sync-box-philips-hue-play-hdmi-passthrough-4k')
That's a huge omission. The kind of folks that would spend $500+ (this box plus a couple of lights) on active bias lighting are the same folks that care about HDR10 and DV.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannys1 Avatar
87 months ago
Only on MacRumors have I heard Philips products continually referred to as by "Signify" is this an American thing? Philips is a pretty big brand over here in the UK, we just call these Philips products.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TJ82 Avatar
87 months ago
Wanted this for ages too, for running Zwift on Apple TV, but the price is absolutely stupid. Hope a competitor comes out next year for a more reasonably priced version.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
The JTizzle Avatar
87 months ago
Soooooo pre ordering this as soon as its live. Looks awesome!
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple's Next Era Begins September 1

Thursday May 7, 2026 10:36 am PDT by
Apple recently announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO later this year, after 15 years of leading the company. Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist with "certain aspects" of the company,...
Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Launching in September With These 10 New Features

Saturday May 9, 2026 6:03 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not launching until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. It was initially reported that the iPhone 18 Pro models would have fully under-screen Face ID, with only a front camera visible in the top-left corner of the screen. However, the latest rumors indicate that only one Face ID component will be moved under the...
Apple Watch Series 10 Jet Black Touch ID

Apple Watch Series 12 and watchOS 27: What to Expect Later This Year

Friday May 8, 2026 2:07 pm PDT by
While not too much has been reported about the next Apple Watch models, there are a few rumors about potential design changes and watchOS 27 features. Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 models are expected to be released in September, and we have outlined some of the key rumored hardware and software changes below. A new Apple Watch SE is not expected this year, as that model was...