![]() It is not perfect, with things like not being able to work with HDR10+ or Dolby Vision content, as well as its high entry cost, holding it back slightly, but the truth is there is nothing else on the market that does what it does better. It smartly elevates the entertainment experience and does so while empowering users with excellent levels of scaleable customisation and options. Overall, then, I think it is hard not to recommend to the HDMI Sync Box to smart lighting and/or home cinema enthusiasts. Yes, sure, you won't use the HDMI Sync Box every time you sit down to watch TV as, after all, there would be little beneficial effect to watching an episode of EastEnders, say, but I found myself turning it on at least two thirds of the time. It may sound like a simple thing, but getting surround lighting really does make a difference in terms of immersion, and adds in something that even the cinema proper doesn't deliver. However, if you are already setup with Hue smart lighting, or really enjoy watching movies and TV, as well as playing video games, there's no doubting either that the Sync Box adds some really neat, unique and immersive functionality. There's no doubting that the Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box, as well as the lighting necessary to get the most out of it, is a serious financial investment, and obviously if you aren't into home cinema or smart lighting then this really isn't a product for you. (Image credit: Philips Hue) Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box review: verdict The Bridge is fundamental to the Hue setup, so make sure you factor that into your purchase. This is not ideal, but it does mean that you won't be unplugging and re-plugging the box every time a piece of content that it doesn't support needs watching.Īnother important thing to note (which was mentioned in brief above) is that the Sync Box necessitates a Philips Hue Bridge, although we're guessing 95 per cent of Hue users already have one installed. HDR10+ and Dolby Vision will still pass through the Sync Box, but it won't be able to analyse the images to determine how to activate the room's smart lighting. It is important to note here, though, that the Sync Box doesn't support HDR10+ or Dolby Vision, though. In terms of technical specifications, the Philips Hue HDMI Sync Box supports 4K, 60Hz connections, which was ideal for my UHD curved Samsung display. On the contrary to that, though, if you are watching, say, a National Geographic nature documentary, then you'll want to select Video mode, as well as a more subtle lighting intensity, which will add immersion but not distract from more stately visual content on screen. This will mean the colour and light your setup throws out is very vibrant and bombastic, matching the action on screen. And, in my opinion, you're going to want to do this as certain content and applications are better suited to different light levels.įor example, if you are playing a fast-paced, action-filled game like Doom Eternal then you should select game mode, a bright light level, and one of the more intense lighting options. Drawing out a flaming torch, though, would suddenly cause a warm red glow to emanate from around the screen.Īnd speaking of light, exactly how bright and intense the light is can be fully controlled by you through the Hue Sync app. In Assassin's Creed Odyssey, sailing the seas led to engulfing blue shades again, while diving into caves would cause all the lights to go out. Naturally, when there was explosions, the lighting would react and bathe you in red, orange and yellows. In Picard the warm scenes in and around his chateaux were improved by being enveloped in warm hues, while in space, either on Picard's ship or on the old Borg Cube, the lighting was all cold blues, greens and metallic shades. I found the system worked best in movies and games, as well as dramatic TV shows, where there is lots of action and changes in location.Ī good example of this was when watching the recently released Amazon Prime Video series Star Trek: Picard, as well as playing the playing the open-world stab-'em-up Assassin's Creed Odyssey. Once you have your lights positioned and setup virtually, you can then fire up some content, open the Hue Sync app and start the sync, and start enjoying the experience, which is really rather immersive. Which brings us onto the lighting itself. Naturally, lights positioned behind a viewer can also be positioned in terms of height, too, so you can if your pockets are deep enough, really wrap yourself in light that syncs with the action on screen. So for example, in my setup, the two Go lights acted as the bottom left and bottom right of the screen, but that was only because I had positioned them virtually in a low position.
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