1. What is Sync Play?

Sync Play plays the exact same content across multiple devices at exactly the same time. Whether it is one room or an entire building, Sync Play keeps every screen aligned: no delays, no mismatched timing, just one unified visual experience wherever your signage lives.

Before TEOS Manage 3.5.0, each player started and advanced through its presentation on its own clock. Two screens next to each other that received the same presentation would typically drift apart by a few seconds, depending on when each device had downloaded the content, rebooted or reconnected. With Sync Play, devices that play the same presentation created in the new content creation module keep their playback aligned, so page changes, video starts and transitions happen together on all screens.

1.1 Typical use cases

A row of screens in a reception area, corridor or canteen that should show the same campaign in lockstep.
Screens on different floors or in different buildings that must switch to the same page at the same moment, for example a company announcement or an emergency message.
Mirrored screens in a meeting or training room showing identical content to both sides of the room.
Any multi-screen installation where visibly different timing would look unprofessional.

2. How Sync Play behaves

2.1 Always on, no settings

Sync Play is part of the platform and is active by default for every presentation created in the new content creation module. There is no switch in TEOS Manage, in the presentation editor or on the device to enable, disable or tune it. You do not have to assign devices to a synchronisation group or nominate a master device: devices that play the same presentation are synchronised automatically.

2.2 What is synchronised

Devices that play the same presentation keep the same position in the presentation, so that pages change and media starts at the same moment on all screens. Devices that play different presentations are not affected by each other.

2.3 What is not synchronised

Presentations created with the legacy signage workflow (templates and pages from TEOS Manage 3.3 and earlier). Only presentations built in the new content creation module benefit from Sync Play.
Live or interactive elements whose timing is driven by the viewer or by an external source, such as touch interaction, live web pages, RSS feeds and data sources. These elements refresh independently on each device.
Content that differs between devices, for example a presentation with device-specific tags or a different playlist per device.

3. Requirements

TEOS Manage 3.5.0 (cloud or on-premise). Upgrades are supported from 3.4.0 only; see the 3.5.0 release notes and the Update Guide.
Presentations created in the new content creation module (Content creation > Presentations). Existing legacy presentations must be rebuilt in the new module to be synchronised.
TEOS Player at the 3.5.0 app level: TEOS Android Player 5.429 for BRAVIA, tablets and Android players; the current TEOS Player builds for Samsung Tizen, LG webOS, Windows and Sharp/Linux as distributed through TEOS App Management.
The same presentation assigned to all devices that should play together, with the same schedule.
A reliable network connection and correct time on every device. Devices must be able to reach the TEOS server continuously; a device that is offline continues to play but can no longer stay aligned until it reconnects.

4. Setting up synchronised screens

Because Sync Play has no settings of its own, setting up synchronised screens is the same as setting up any signage presentation in TEOS Manage 3.5.0:

Install or update the TEOS Player on each device to the 3.5.0 app version. New screens can be enrolled with the “scan, name, play” QR flow shown by the player after installation; existing screens can be updated centrally through TEOS App Management or with an App updates action schedule.
Create the presentation in Content creation. Use the live preview in the editor to check pages, durations and transitions.
Assign the presentation to the devices or device group that should play together, using the same schedule for all of them.
Let the devices download the content. Once all devices have the presentation, playback aligns automatically.

Tip: Use a device group for the screens that belong together. Assigning the presentation to the group guarantees that every screen receives the same content and the same schedule, which is the only prerequisite Sync Play has.

4.1 Recommendations for the best result

Use identical media on all screens: same video file, same resolution and same orientation. Different encodings can start at the same moment but still look out of step.
Prefer wired network connections for screens that stand next to each other; Wi-Fi latency and dropouts are the most common cause of visible offsets.
Keep the devices on the same player version. Mixed versions may behave differently in transitions.
Avoid very short page durations (under a few seconds) with heavy media; give the players enough time to buffer the next item.
After a content change, allow a few minutes for all devices to download the new version before judging the synchronisation.

5. Troubleshooting

Symptom	What to check
Two screens show the same presentation but are not aligned	Check that both devices run the 3.5.0 player, that the presentation was created in the new content creation module (not the legacy workflow) and that both devices show as online in TEOS Manage.
Screens drift apart after some time	Check network stability (preferably wired) and that the device time is correct. A device that loses its connection keeps playing but re-aligns only after reconnecting.
One screen is a few seconds behind only on videos	Check that the same video file is used on all screens and that the device is not struggling with the bitrate (older BRAVIA or tablets). Re-encode to a lower bitrate if needed.
Alignment is lost right after a content update	Wait until all devices have downloaded the new version of the presentation. Check Content download status in Device management.
Nothing happens when I look for a Sync Play setting	This is expected. Sync Play has no settings; it is always active for presentations from the new content creation module.

6. Frequently asked questions

Can I turn Sync Play off for a specific presentation or device? No. Sync Play is a platform behaviour and has no on/off switch.

Does Sync Play work with my existing presentations? Only with presentations created in the new content creation module introduced in TEOS Manage 3.4 and extended in 3.5. Legacy presentations keep their previous behaviour until they are rebuilt.

Do I need an extra licence? No. The 3.5.0 release notes list no licence changes; Sync Play is included for devices with a signage-capable licence (TEOS Advanced, TEM-ALxY).

Is Sync Play the same as a video wall? No. Sync Play keeps identical presentations on separate screens in step. A video wall shows one image spread over several tiles.

What happens if one device goes offline? It continues to play the presentation it has and re-aligns with the other devices when it reconnects.