Philips Hue · Lightstrips and TV sync
Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box Installation in London
Updated
The Play HDMI Sync Box sits between your sources, such as a games console or streaming box, and the TV, and sends the colours on screen to your Hue lights. The 8K model on Hue's UK store has four HDMI 2.1 inputs and one output, and launch reports from September 2026 describe a slimmer single-input 4K model too. A vetted JACK pro in London works out the HDMI chain with your TV, soundbar or receiver, puts the lights behind the screen and builds the entertainment area, for a fixed price you see before you book.
In short
Yes. A vetted JACK pro in London can set up a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box; there is no mains wiring, only the HDMI chain between your sources, the box and the TV, plus the Hue lights it drives. The 8K model needs a Hue Bridge to reach your lights; launch reports say only the single-input Sync Box 4K and the Play Screen Sync can drive one gradient strip over Bluetooth without one.
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Play HDMI Sync Box: key facts
- HDMI ports (8K model)
- Four HDMI 2.1 inputs and one output Source: Philips Hue UK: Play HDMI Sync Box 8K
- Video support (8K model)
- 8K at 60 Hz and 4K at 120 Hz, with ALLM, VRR, Dolby Vision and HDR10+ Source: What Hi-Fi: the Play HDMI Sync Box 8K
- Single-input model
- Play HDMI Sync Box 4K, announced in September 2026: one HDMI input, slim, up to 4K at 60 Hz Source: Notebookcheck: Play Screen Sync, Play HDMI Sync Box 4K and Play gradient TV strips
- Without a Bridge
- The Sync Box 4K can sync one gradient lightstrip over Bluetooth Source: Notebookcheck: Play Screen Sync, Play HDMI Sync Box 4K and Play gradient TV strips
- Hue Bridge (8K model)
- Required for the box to reach your Hue lights Source: TechRadar: Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box 8K review
- Matter
- Hue's Matter page names the Play HDMI Sync Box as an exception that does not support Matter, though the 8K's UK product page lists Matter among compatible systems Source: Philips Hue (US): Hue and Matter
- Play light bars
- One power supply runs up to three bars; the extension pack comes without its own supply Source: Philips Hue UK: Play light bar extension pack
- Play cable reach
- The Play extension cable gives a maximum system length of 7 m per lamp Source: Philips Hue UK: Play extension cable
- No-HDMI alternative
- Play Screen Sync: a fisheye camera mounted on the TV that reads the screen, from any source; IP20, for dry locations Source: Philips Hue UK: Play Screen Sync
Product facts come from Philips Hue's UK product pages and support articles, linked beside each fact; where the UK page is silent, a few come from Hue's other English-language sites and say so. Hue changes its range often, so check the model on your box or order and send it with your request. Last checked 1 November 2026.
How the Play HDMI Sync Box is powered and mounted
Nothing about the Sync Box touches your home's wiring. It is an HDMI switch with a light engine: your console, streaming stick or set-top box plugs into its inputs, its single output goes on towards the screen, and it reads the picture on the way through to work out colours for the Hue lights in the room. On the 8K model the four inputs are HDMI 2.1, so a console sending 4K at 120 Hz or using VRR can pass through it.
The chain is the hard part, not the box. With a soundbar or AV receiver in the system, the pro works out where each source should plug in, which device carries sound to the speakers, and whether the picture modes you rely on survive the extra hop, before any cable moves. The Play light bars and gradient strips the box drives also need sockets near the TV, and one Play power supply runs up to three bars, so the socket plan matters as much as the HDMI one.
Most Sync Box set-ups run through a Hue Bridge, where the pro builds an entertainment area that tells the box where each light sits around the screen. Hue's Matter page lists the Sync Box as one of the few Hue products that does not support Matter, even though the 8K's UK product page lists Matter among compatible systems, so plan on running it from Hue's own apps. An HDMI box also cannot see the TV's built-in apps; for those, the Play Screen Sync camera reads the screen itself, and Hue's paid Sync TV app runs on many Samsung and LG TVs.
What the pro checks first
- Every HDMI source you use, and which of them send 4K at 120 Hz, VRR or Dolby Vision
- Whether a soundbar or AV receiver sits between the sources and the TV, and which TV input carries its sound
- Whether you have a Hue Bridge or Bridge Pro, and which Hue lights should join the entertainment area
- Sockets behind or near the TV for the box, the lights and their power supplies
- How much you watch through the TV's own apps, which an HDMI box cannot read
What the pro does on the Play HDMI Sync Box
- HDMI plan drawn up with you before anything is unplugged, so no source ends up without sound or picture
- Sources moved onto the box's inputs and its output run on to the TV or receiver, with each cable labelled
- Box placed where every cable reaches without strain
- Play bars or a gradient strip mounted around the screen, with power supplies tucked away and plugged in
- Entertainment area built on your Hue Bridge, with each light placed where it really stands
- Picture checked through the box on each source, including a console's 4K at 120 Hz mode where you use one
How the Play HDMI Sync Box installation goes
- 1Your photos of the TV area, the back of the TV and each source reviewed, and the HDMI plan agreed
- 2Sync Box and lights updated and added in the Hue app
- 3Sources connected to the box, and the box to the TV or receiver
- 4Lights mounted and powered, then the entertainment area set around the screen
- 5Sync tested on a film, a game and live TV through each input
- 6Sync on and off shown to you from the app, so you can control it yourself
Before you book: what to send
- Which Sync Box you have, 8K or 4K, or whether it is a Play Screen Sync instead
- A list of everything plugged into the TV now, with a photo of the TV's HDMI ports
- The make and model of any soundbar or AV receiver
- Which Hue lights you want synced, and whether you have a Bridge
- Whether the TV is wall-mounted or will be, so mounting can go on the same booking
Sync Box, Screen Sync or the Sync TV app: which suits your TV?
Hue has three ways to make lights follow the picture, and each one sees a different part of what you watch.
| Route | What it reads | Hue Bridge | What the pro sets up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Play HDMI Sync Box 8K | HDMI sources plugged into its four inputs | Required | The HDMI chain, the lights and the entertainment area |
| Play HDMI Sync Box 4K | One HDMI source, up to 4K at 60 Hz | Not for one gradient strip over Bluetooth; needed for more lights | The single HDMI link, the strip, and a Bridge set-up if lights are added |
| Play Screen Sync | The screen itself, through a camera on the TV, so the TV's own apps too | Not for one gradient strip over Bluetooth; needed for more lights | Camera position, the strip and any other lights |
| Hue Sync TV app | Content on many Samsung and LG TVs (check the TV's app store) | Required | The app on the TV and its link to the Bridge; the app is a paid plan |
Hueblog's review found the Screen Sync's colours less accurate than the HDMI Sync Box. JACK does not sell any of these: you buy them, and the pro sets them up.
How is Philips Hue installation priced in London?
A vetted pro prices your Hue job from the products and your photos, and the JACK app shows that fixed price before you book.
Full pricing guide for Philips Hue installationFrequently asked questions
Can the Hue Sync Box work with a soundbar or AV receiver?
Usually, yes: it goes into the same HDMI chain, and how it fits depends on the ports on your receiver or soundbar and TV. The pro plans the order from your model numbers, then tests sound and picture on every source before finishing. Send the model numbers with your booking so the plan is ready on the day.
Does the Play HDMI Sync Box need a Hue Bridge?
Yes for the 8K model, and for any set-up with several lights around the screen, such as Play light bars. Launch reports say the single-input Sync Box 4K can drive one gradient lightstrip over Bluetooth without a Bridge; add more lights and you need a Bridge or Bridge Pro.
Does the Sync Box work with Apple Home, Google Home or Alexa through Matter?
Not according to Hue's Matter page, which names the Play HDMI Sync Box as an exception that does not support Matter, even through a Hue Bridge. The 8K's UK product page does list Matter among compatible systems, so ask Hue before relying on it. The Hue lights the box drives can still join Matter once they are on the Bridge.
How much does Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box installation cost in London?
It is a fixed price for your Play HDMI Sync Box, worked out by a vetted pro from the model, a photo of where it is going and what power is there now, and shown in the JACK app before you book. Other devices can go on the same booking for one price. If you would rather pay for time, hourly hire for smart home is typically £45–£95 per hour as a guide.
Often booked together
Play Gradient Lightstrip installation
The colour-zoned strip for the back of a TV: Hue's 2026 standard and Pro versions can be cut and are made for screens up to 100 inches.
Bridge Pro installation
Hue's top hub, listed for 150 lights and 50 accessories: placed and cabled to the router, an older Bridge migrated across, and everything the move drops put back.
More Philips Hue lightstrips and tv sync
Philips Hue lightstrip and tv sync installation
Flux, OmniGlow, Solo and Play strips fitted out of sight, and Hue's Sync Boxes and Screen Sync set up so the lights follow your TV.
All Philips Hue installation guides
Philips Hue installation in London: ceiling lights, downlights, wall switch modules, outdoor lights and Secure cameras fitted by vetted pros. Fixed price first.
Related services in London
Sources
The device facts and rules on this page come from these pages, checked on 1 November 2026.
Jack All Trades (JACK) is an independent London service. It is not part of, affiliated with or endorsed by Signify, which makes Philips Hue and uses the Philips brand under licence, or by Philips. Philips Hue product names are used only to describe the products JACK pros fit and set up; prices are set by JACK pros, not by Signify, and JACK does not sell Hue products.
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