Dish Network will have 4K this summer for every UHD TV
Dish Network is ready to tread new ground with its internet-only Sling TV service, but what about folks who want the highest quality video and are willing to pay for it? It will join the 4K party this summer with an upgraded Joey extender that not only tosses Ultra HD video around, but is also so slim it can be wall-mounted behind compatible TVs. The dual-core ARM processor inside is even powerful enough that it can toss up two HD streams side by side. Sure, Dish is coming in later than competitors Comcast and DirecTV, but so far those two are only working with a limited set of TVs, like Samsung and LG. The 4K Joey works with any UHD TV with HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2.
If you're not already 4K-ready, Dish has upgrades for you too -- there's a Vevo app, new touchpad and microphone-equipped remote control and a new UI all coming to the Hopper DVR this year. The remote is smaller than its predecessor with half as many buttons, while its touchpad is clickable and can turn into a backlit keypad when needed. This looks a lot better than the one Dish demonstrated back in 2009, so we'll give it a shot.
The Vevo app is just part of a larger music expansion, as Dish is launching a free "Whole Home Music" service that works through its boxes to play local files, Pandora, iHeartRadio or TuneIn. The new remote and UI will start beta testing early in the year before rolling out widely later, while the music service is due this summer.
