UPDATED, 4:09 p.m.: The new box is available to all customers, not just new ones, as I was originally told. However, there will likely be a fee. No announcement yet on how much.
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While a big part of the Consumer Electronics Show focused on 3D television, Dish Network focused on a better way to watch the TV you pay for with the new TV Everywhere service.

No, this isn’t the same TV Everywhere that the cable TV companies are pushing (Dish says it’s pursuing a trademark).

However, the two TV Everywhere’s are similar. The idea behind the separate services is that if you’re a paying TV customer, you should get access to those shows online and on TV.

The big difference? Cable TV’s version may not include every TV channel you pay for in your cable plan. Dish’s does, said Vivek Khemkeh Khemka (corrected 2:56 p.m.), Dish’s vice president of customer technology.

“The key message of TV Everywhere is that you pay once for your TV and you can get it everywhere you want,” Khemka  said.

By everywhere, Khemka  means online, from any computer, from compatible mobile phones and on a second TV in the house that may not have a receiver.

How does it work? Slingbox.

That handy technology lets people watch their home TV from anywhere in the world. It streams recorded or live TV. Sling technology will be added to the new HD DuoDVR ViP 922 (pictured on right), which includes a 1 TB hard drive and can be accessed online or with a mobile phone. It will be available in the second quarter this year to new customers only and existing customers who want to upgrade. Dish says there will likely be an upgrade fee but no announcement has been made yet. (updated 4:10 p.m.)

Existing Dish subscribers who have an HD DVR can get an adapter for free a price that has not been determined (My mistake — I assumed the adapter would be free but prices have not yet been announced). The adapter is a strange looking flat device, also called the Slingbox 700U, which is available to any TV service provider. It attaches to existing DVRs via a USB cable. Photo on right is the Dish adapter.

But wait! There’s more to Dish’s TV Everywhere.

While Dish users have had multiroom DVRs for about five years, they couldn’t stream HD recordings to other rooms. Dish announced the new Dish Network WiFi HD Monitor, which will display 720p video in a 16×9 widscreen format. It’ll also offers users the ability to manage DVR recordings and not just access them. The new HD Monitor is also scheduled for a second quarter 2010 release.

Here are pictures of the slimmer device, plus images of the new menu design below:

But get this: The new HD monitor isn’t necessary if you have an HDTV with Internet access. Irvine’s Broadcom Corp. is providing the chip and told me about this nifty feature. Khemka confirmed it.

One last thing: Dish launched a free mobile app to turn an iPhone or iPod Touch into a Dish TV remote. The Dish Remote Access App will not only change channels as a TV remote should, but it can change channels even when you’re not at home. It will also manage the DVR library by setting shows to record, deleting others. It will work with compatible Dish Network receivers.

It’s available now at iTunes and will work with the upcoming ViP 922 DVR and the WiFi Monitor, mentioned above. If you don’t have an iPhone or iPod Touch, you can still access the online manager through the Web or other mobile device. The Dish Remote access works with these Dish receivers: 522, 625, ViP 612, ViP 622, ViP 722, ViP 722k and requires a Dish account.

For more CES 2010 coverage, visit the Gadgetress CES page at gadgetress.freedomblogging.com/ces2010.

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