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The desktop computers cost close to $800 in a country where the average income is under $20 a month. Some Cubans do have access to extra money, with much of it sent by relatives living outside of the communist country.

 

Since becoming president, Raul Castro has ended the ban on a number of electronic goods. Recently Cubans were allowed to purchase mobile phones and DVD players.

 

The Chinese-made Q-Tech computers went on sale Friday, but Internet access remains limited to certain workplaces, schools and universities on the island. The Cuban government says it is not able to connect to the undersea fiber optic cables because of the U.S. trade embargo.

 

Online connections are currently made through satellite, which is expensive and has limited bandwidth.

 

Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez, a Cuban ally, is putting a new cable under the Caribbean.

 

Its not clear if the Cuban government will allow its citizens to have unrestricted access to the Internet once the connection is completed.