A Dell laptop, believe it or not. The Latitude E6400 XFR is Dell’s (DELL) first true entrant into the so-called “rugged” laptop category, and its an impressive one. Targeted at the military and first-responder market, the machine is encased in a chassis made of ballistic armor–one Dell claims has twice the impact strength of magnesium alloy. It’s powered by Intel’s (INTC) Core 2 Duo processor, runs Windows Vista and supports Wi-Fi, 3G mobile broadband and GPS. Perfect for military contractors, and more importantly, for the state and local governments currently lining up for billions of dollars in stimulus money. Said Dell spokesman Patrick Burns, “With the stimulus package under way, we’re getting lots of interest.” I’ll bet you are, because at $4,299, you’ll need a stimulus package to afford it.

The new machine is largely as predicted. It boasts Apple’s new unibody chassis and a glass touch trackpad. At 6.6 pounds, it’s the world’s lightest notebook. It has a hi-res backlit display. “The best display we’ve ever shipped in a notebook,” says Schiller, with a 60 percent greater color gamut than other machines.

The new Pro has the same glossy screen as its brethren, but thankfully, it’s available with a $50 anti-glare option as well.

Finally, it incorporates a new battery pack that boasts an eight-hour charge life and 1000 recharges, three times the industry standard. It’s not the zinc battery that some observers were expecting, but very innovative nonetheless. There’s a chip in the battery that intelligently monitors an “adaptive charge,” whatever that means. Bottom line: three hours more battery life than previous machines. According to Apple (AAPL), the battery should last five years, which will result in fewer batteries and landfills and makes this 17-inch model a greener machine.

The new Pro 17-inch MacBook starts at $2799 and will ship at the end of the month.

Ives describes how excess aluminum left over from the original piece used in manufacturing is recycled throughout the process. The precision aluminum unibody enclosure that Apple used in the MacBook Air, he notes, is now being extended to the rest of the Mac notebook lineup.

Jobs returns to the stage. He explains that chipmaker Nvidia approached Apple (AAPL) about a new graphics chip that could be used in desktops. Apple decided to adopt it for laptops, however. The chip, called GForce 9400M, delivers graphics up to five times faster than Apple’s current graphics chips.

New notebooks will boast a multi-touch glass trackpad. The entire trackpad is the button.

The trackpad supports multifinger gestures, including some new ones. Four-finger gestures can control AMD app-switching.

A full-glass instant-on LED displays all connectors on one side. The notebooks feature next-gen graphics, mini-display port connector and a magnetic latch.

And they’re environmentally responsible. The unibody design, for example, requires only half the number of parts of Apple’s previous notebooks.

Jobs passes a chassis around the audience, and it is, indeed, very slick. “A tour de force of engineering,” says Jobs. Holding one of these in your hands, it’s tough to disagree.

More coming …