Dell is investigating allegations that one of its laptops underwent spontaneous combustion in Japan earlier this month. Pictures purporting to show the machine in conflagrante, as it were, popped up on the internet last week.

According to Reuters, the naughty notebook is now back in the manufacturer's hands. Dell technicians have begun to dissect the machine's remains to see if they can figure out why it apparently proved so flammable.

No one was hurt in the small blaze, which took place during a conference held in Osaka. Speculation has centred on an issue with the notebook's battery. However, a Dell spokeswoman told the newsagency no conclusions had yet been drawn. ®