Screen-reactive ambient lighting + Home Assistant — what’s actually realistic?

TL;DR: I want screen-reactive ambient lighting (TV back + vertical lights) controlled via Home Assistant, without rooting TVs or breaking DRM. Trying to understand what actually works long-term.

Hey folks,

I’m planning to buy a TV + ambient lighting setup and want to sanity-check my understanding before buying hardware.

Goal:

• Screen-reactive lighting (Ambilight-style)
• Lights behind TV and vertical/side lights
• Controlled/orchestrated via Home Assistant
• No rooting TVs, no HDCP stripping, no warranty-breaking hacks

From what I’ve researched so far:

• Hyperion on Google TV / WebOS doesn’t really work for DRM apps
• HDMI sync boxes work reliably but are closed ecosystems
• Full WLED screen-reactive setups need HDMI capture and DRM compromises

I’m trying to answer:

1. Is there any legit way to get screen-reactive vertical lights without capture hacks?
2. For those running HDMI sync box + WLED, does it feel cohesive or fragmented?
3. Do most people treat sync boxes as a “reactive island” and WLED as ambient only?

Not looking for perfection — just trying to avoid building something that breaks every firmware update.

Would really value hearing from people actually running this day-to-day.