Dell yesterday gave details of an update to its line of business laptops but stopped short of releasing its long-promised ultraportable "netbook" computer.

The world's largest PC maker unveiled six new machines, including two more compact laptops which it said would appeal to a new type of worker it called "the digital nomad".

Dell said that the new 'E' range of its Latitude family of laptops would be characterised by much longer battery life - up to 19 hours - and greater security, allowing a company to wipe information off a machine remotely should it be stolen, for example.

But it teased an audience in San Francisco and London by not releasing a much smaller computer with a nine-inch screen, as had been expected and as Michael Dell, the company's chief executive, has said it will.

Several of Dell's competitors, including Lenovo, ASUStEK and Acer have recently released highly portable netbooks - so called because they are used by owners principally to access the web.

The new range of Dell laptops will deliver 19 hours of batttey life - ten hours on a straight charge, and a further nine if the owner plugs in a "battery slice". An high-speed charger will also mean that 80 per cent of the battery life acan be recovered in a hour, Dell said.

Two of the models, the E4200 and the E4300, were described by Dell as ultraportable - they have 12.1 and 13.3-inch screens respectively, weigh 1kg (2.2lbs), and run on solid-state drives.

One of the other devices - the E6400 - is designed to be used in extreme conditions by customers such as the armed forces, Dell said, and includes features such as a "shock-mounted hard drive" and a screen that is viewable in bright outside light.

Pricing details were not immediately available.

Dell said that the machines had been designed to cater to the demands of "an increasingly mobile workforce" which was typified by an employee who worked from various locations.

Further details of the new range are available here.

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