LAS VEGAS (AP) — Satellite broadcaster Dish Network Corp. on Monday said it's launching a high-powered set-top box that can act as the central TV recorder for the whole home.The "Hopper" box can record six shows simultaneously, and its recordings can be accessed from smaller boxes, called "Joeys," that can be distributed around the house.
Other TV providers have so-called "whole-home digital video recorders," but Englewood, Colo.-based Dish is taking the concept a bit further. The Hopper, for instance, will record each day's lineup of primetime shows on the major broadcast networks.
The box will be free with a two-year contract, said Vivek Khemka, Dish's vice president of product management. The company will start shipping it in January, and it should be in consumer hands shortly thereafter.
Dish gave the press a preview of the Hopper ahead of the International Consumer Electronics Show, which starts Tuesday in Las Vegas.