Feel like you’re part of the action

This article was written for Western Sydney Publishing and published in September 2025. Father’s Day just went by, and my kids surprised me with a gift I never saw coming. I’m a big movie fan, especially when it comes to Sci-Fi, Action, and Horror. They got me a Philips Hue Lighting setup. Philips Hue is an intelligent lighting system that syncs your lights with whatever’s happening on your TV, turning your living room into a colourful space that matches the action.

Hue lights monitor the colours and brightness of your TV in real time and replicate what’s happening, so the action spills into your room. An explosion in a movie lights up your walls with orange, or an underwater scene with blue. It’s all about making you feel part of the action, not just lighting up the room.

What Do You Need to Get Started?

To sync your lights with your TV, you’ll need a few essentials:

• Philips Hue Bridge: You need this hub to connect your lights to the Hue app. It also helps everything work quickly and smoothly.
• Colour-capable Hue lights: I got a pair of Hue Play light bars, but you could also use the Play Gradient Lightstrip or Hue Signe floor lamps.
• Sync method: You have two main choices:
  • Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box: This device connects your HDMI devices, such as Apple TV, PlayStation, or streaming sticks, to your TV. It can handle up to four devices and works with 4K and HDR.
  • Hue Sync TV App: Available on select Samsung and LG TVs, this app eliminates the need for extra hardware by analysing the TV’s internal video signal.

The Hue Sync App is showing up on most new TVs. One of mine had it, but not the one in my home theatre. So, I needed the Sync box, which costs about $500. Ensure that your TV supports the app before making a purchase.

Setting everything up is relatively simple. It took me a couple of hours to install and play with the lighting settings. The results are impressive. Your living room feels like an extension of the screen, with explosions, sunsets, and neon lights looking even more vivid. It’s especially cool for gaming or music videos, where the fast colour changes really add to the excitement. Philips Hue is the leader in this category, but you can also consider Govee DreamView or Lytmi Neo Sync as alternatives.