Among the many Apple-related rumors that keep resurfacing over time is the one that Cupertino is busy making an HDTV of their very own -- forget about that little Apple TV box, Apple may dive head first into the $100 billion LCD TV market this year.

AppleInsider is reporting that Apple is planning to introduce a new internet-connected HD television before the end of the year, making the leap from a tiny Apple TV box attached to an HDTV to having everything packaged in one. But can the company make the leap from the smaller screens of the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad to dominate the living room at last?

"Our research suggests this ‘Smart TV’ would go well beyond the miniature $99 second-generation Apple TV that the company released last fall and provide a full-blown TV product for consumers," explains analyst Brian White with Ticonderoga Securities, who relayed the possibility in a note to investors after picking up “data points” while attending a Chinese electronics trade show this week.

"The combination of Apple's powerful ecosystem, industrial design savvy, powerful brand and ability to reinvent product categories could make Apple a powerful force in the TV world over the next few years," White concludes.

This isn’t the first time an analyst has been bullish on the idea of an Apple HDTV -- Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster has long been a proponent of the idea, claiming that the box will start around $2,000.

Needless to say, if Apple makes such a move, it’s likely to make a splash by doing so -- but the real question will be, what will they call it since Apple TV is already taken?

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