Cuba puts first computers on sale to the public

Cubans are getting wired. The island\'s communist government put desktop computers on sale to the public for the first time Friday, ending a ban on PC sales as another despised restriction on daily life fell away under new President Raul Castro.

A tower-style QTECH PC and monitor costs nearly US$780 (euro505). While few Cubans can afford that, dozens still gawked outside a tiny Havana electronics store, crowding every inch of its large glass windows and leaving finger and nose prints behind.

Inside, four clerks tore open boxes, hastily assembling display computers. By the time a sign went up listing the PCs specifications, more than a dozen shoppers were lined up to get in.

\"Look at that!\" murmured Armando Batista as he pressed against the window. Although he can\'t afford to buy one, he said, \"these are good for a start.\"

The gray and black QTECHs, complete with DVD players, bulky CRT monitors and standard-issue black mice and keyboards, are the only model available.

The Cuban PCs have Intel Celeron processors with 80 gigabytes of memory and 512 RAM and are equipped with Microsoft\'s Windows XP operating system. Both could be violations of a U.S. trade embargo, but not something Washington can do anything about in the absence of diplomatic relations with Havana.

Clerks said the PCs were assembled by Cuban companies using parts imported from China. For about $80 (euro52) less, buyers in the U.S. can get a desktop with more than twice the memory, a 80GB SATA hard drive and 22-inch LCD flat screen monitor.

The crowded store in central Havana\'s Carlos III shopping center is the only outlet in the country now selling the PCs. Clerks at a few other government-run stores -- where Cubans must buy everything -- said they expect to receive deliveries sometime after next week.

Brian Brito, 14, saved his allowance for two years to buy himself a PC for his upcoming 15th birthday.

\"It\'s good for playing games,\" he said, while lugging his new computer from the mall.

But his mother had other ideas. \"He\'ll use it for school, for learning,\" she said. \"And besides, it\'s a form of healthy entertainment.\"

Except for some trusted officials and state journalists, most Cubans are banned from accessing the Internet at home. So many of these new computers may never be connected to the Web.

Some people buy limited e-mail access on the black market, usually sharing an account with the authorized holder, who usually works for the state. Even if they could access the Web, Cubans can\'t shop on line because they don\'t have credit cards.

Raul Castro promised to eliminate many of these prohibitions when he assumed the presidency on Feb. 24, after his ailing 81-year-old brother Fidel resigned. Besides selling consumer goods, he has ended bans that kept most Cubans from having cell phones, staying in luxury hotels or renting cars.

An internal government memo had indicated that PCs, DVD players, motorbikes and plug-in pressure cookers would be sold for the first time in April. Everything but the computers made it to the shelves last month.

Computers have been sold on Cuba\'s black market for years -- at prices comparable to the US$780 (euro505) now seen in the store. But now that computers are available legally, some consumers expect black market prices to fall.

The government controls more than 90 percent Cuba\'s economy, paying an average state salary of US$19.50 (euro12.50) per month. But most Cubans have access to extra income through jobs with foreign firms, tips from working in tourism or money sent by relatives living abroad.

Thousands have snapped up phones and coveted kitchen appliances in recent weeks.

\"Hotels, cell phones, DVD, Cuba is changing a lot,\" said Oscar Perez, who came to help his 14-year-old cousin carry his new computer to the car. \"That\'s positive. But we want more.\"

古巴第一次将电脑向公众销售

古巴人民也开始用插电的家伙了。Raul Castro上台之后，解除了禁止个人电脑销售的禁令；周五，岛上的共产党政府第一次将电脑向公众销售。

一款名为QTECH的塔式机箱连同显示器，售价约780美元（约人民币5390元）。尽管此价格让绝大多数人望而却步，但哈瓦那一家小型的电子商店橱窗上数不清的手印和鼻印却证明了人们希望一睹电脑的热情。

店内，4个店员打开箱子，匆忙地将电脑与显示器连接在一起。当写有电脑配置的标示牌升起的时候，已经有10多个购物者在排队等候了。

Armando Batista贴在窗户上，嘟囔着：“快看啊！”虽然他还买不起，但是他觉得“这是一个好的开始。”

这次发售的唯一一款QTECH电脑以灰黑色调为主，配备了DVD播放机，笨重的CRT显示器，以及黑色的键盘和鼠标。

这台古巴电脑配有Intel赛扬的CPU，80GB硬盘和512MB内存，预装微软的Windows XP操作系统。尽管硬件和软件方面都违反了美国的贸易禁运规定，但由于古巴和美国还没有建立起外交关系，因此，华府对此无计可施。

店员解释道，这台电脑由古巴公司组装，部分部件从中国进口。在美国，购买一台配有1GB以上内存，80GB SATA硬盘，22寸LCD显示器的台式机，大概只需要700美元（约人民币4837元）。

这家被挤的水泄不通的商店位于哈瓦那卡洛斯三世购物中心的中心地带，是当前被特许销售电脑的唯一卖场。其他的国营商店的店员表示，他们希望在下周能将电脑上架。

14岁的Brian Brito，在两年前就开始攒零用钱，希望在15岁生日的时候，给自己添置一台电脑。

搬着新电脑走出卖场时，他表示：“这必将是一件游戏利器。”

但是他的妈妈却有着不同的想法。她说：“电脑将用于学习。除此之外，它还是一种健康的娱乐方式。”

除了少数公务员和国家的记者之外，大多数古巴人不允许在家中接入互联网。因此，这些新电脑中的大多数都不会被接入网络。

有些人在黑市上从公务员手里购买电子邮件地址，即使这样，电邮地址少的可怜，而且要跟被授权的所有者共同使用。即使古巴人能上网，他们也无法网上购物，因为他们没有信用卡。

81岁的Fidel Castro由于健康原因退休，2月24日，他的弟弟Raul Castro担任总统。Raul承诺将废除一系列的禁令。除了允许销售消费品外，他还解除了诸如禁止古巴人使用手机，入住豪华宾馆，以及租车的禁令。

一份政府内部备忘录显示，电脑，DVD播放器，摩托车和电压力锅等将于四月份被允许公开销售。但是，电脑是上个月唯一上架的商品。

多年之前，电脑就已经在黑市上销售。但在电脑被允许合法公开销售之后，许多消费者希望黑市价格有所降低。

政府控制着古巴90%的经济，月平均工资19.50美元（约人民币135元。译者注：卡斯特罗月薪约300元）。但是，大多数古巴人都有着其他的经济来源，如为外国企业打工，小费或者国外亲戚的汇款。

禁令接触之后，几个星期以来，数千人抢购手机，并迫切希望得到厨房小电器。

来为14岁的表弟搬电脑的Oscar Perez表示：“宾馆，手机，DVD，古巴正在改变。这很好，但是我们想要更多。”