Although DISH Network's previous quarter wasn't anything to write home about, it sounds like the satcaster (EchoStar, technically) isn't going to allow its set-top line to grow stale in the process. During the recent Team Summit in Nashville, Tennessee, DISH's CEO Charlie Ergen reiterated that it would be beaming out "more than 100 national HD channels" by the end of 2008, and he also made mention that the EchoStar 11 satellite would lift off in July. Most interesting, however, was all the talk about the new STBs. The forthcoming ViP 722s will be the first HD DVR from the outfit with loads of Sling technology built in -- not too shocking considering the recent acquisition. Additionally, the box is said to feature an all new interface and the ability to browse to (select) websites, double as a SlingCatcher and even handle Clip & Sling duties. There's plenty more where this came from, so be sure and hit the read link when you've got some spare time for reading.

[Via GizmoLovers]

We honestly can't wait for Sling's SlingCatcher media streamer to be released, so we'll take any little scrap of info we can -- and these shots of the box are pretty tasty scraps indeed, because it looks like Sling's latest will have some sweet codec support: WMV, MPEG2, MPEG4, H.264 and XviD in a variety of file formats, including .VOB. Sadly, it looks like output maxes out at 1080i, but that's a small tradeoff for what looks to be one of the most flexible streamers on the market. Hit the read link for two more shots, including the codec list.