What’s so exciting about a processor chip? The NEC CE143 has geeks around the world pretty worked up, not because it’s all the sexy in its own right (it’s not bad though!), but because the NEC CE143 processor supports video decoding up to 1080p. Translated into English for regular humans, that means this little chip will enable your cell phone to play movies in High Definition for the first time ever, making it possible to carry around your own miniature Home Theater application—minus the surround sound.

The NEC CE143 can also take photos with a resolution of 12 megapixels and adds features such as face detection, image stabilization and advanced digital zoom. Phone manufacturers should be getting samples by March, and they could see mass production by April. The chip will probably add about $44 to the manufacturing cost. Employers who just got a handle on tamping down web-surfing on company time will shortly be confronted with employees who watch HD movies in their cubicles on a Smart Phone. Who says America isn’t a great place?