Consumer news

Those personal computers have finally arrived in Cuba.

A month or so after the Castro regime announced that Cubans would in future be able to buy PCs without the need for Government permission, the first machines appeared over the weekend in selected stores in Havana.

But according to this report in The Independent newspaper, the machines are both pricey – and a little, well, clunky?

The only brand available is Qtech, a unit powered by the cheaper Intel Celeron chip, which comes complete with DVD player (but no burner?), a “bulky monitor”, Windows XP operating system and what are described as "standard-issue" mouse and keyboard.

The cost? About USD 780.00. Which is a fair bit of money in Cuba. And of course, you can only purchase them at this price (no discounts) and only from a State-owned store.

According to the paper, clerks selling the PCs have confirmed that the Qtech is being assembled in Cuba from Chinese parts.

Photo: Javier Galeano, AP