from Hacker News

Why every microwave sucks these days

by bearbin on 10/25/23, 10:53 PM with 408 comments

  • by ForkMeOnTinder on 10/26/23, 12:37 AM

    As a chronic comparison shopper, this is a first-world problem that's near and dear to my heart. I think the reason microwaves (and appliances in general) suck is because comparison shopping is so hard.

    I wish I could get a list of all microwaves and filter by criteria such as:

    - Does the +30 seconds button start cooking immediately, or do you have to also press "start" afterwards?

    - Does it beep every 30 seconds after it finishes, and if so can I turn that off?

    - Better yet, can I turn the beeping off completely without taking the damn thing apart and desoldering the beeper, and of course in the process risking my life near the high-voltage electronics?

    But it's basically impossible to know these things without buying it and opening the box, so there's no competitive pressure pushing manufacturers to make their appliances less annoying, so we all have to live with these little papercuts throughout our daily lives for perpetuity.

  • by crazygringo on 10/26/23, 1:33 PM

    There's a big innovation I'm looking for in microwaves and I simply do not understand why nobody sells it yet:

    An interior IR sensor/camera that will cycle/adjust power until my food is fully cooked to a certain temperature but not above it.

    I don't want to pick a duration and I don't want to pick power levels and I don't want hot spots and I don't want to have to check the food every 30 seconds or 3 minutes or whatever it is. I just want to cook to a certain temperature, and avoid hot spots above that temperature.

    So instead of fiddling with dumb things like 100% power for the first 2 minutes and then 10% power for another 8 minutes, I just want to reheat my chicken breast to 145°F or my salmon to 120°F or my soup to 165°F or my maple syrup to 180°F or my water for tea to 205°F. (Just examples, not looking to argue over temps!)

    So let the microwave blast it full strength until there are hot spots, then cycle off to let hot spots spread their heat to the rest of the food, then blast more, until the whole food exterior is within a range of the desired temperature, then ding it's done!

    And while it can't detect interior temperatures directly, you should be able to use the rate of exterior cooling during the off cycle to determine whether the interior has come up to temperature. E.g. the outside of a chicken breast with a still-frozen interior cools rapidly; the outside of a chicken breast with a hot interior stays hotter for longer.

  • by udia on 10/26/23, 1:02 AM

    Instant Pot died primarily due to private equity greed, not because of Instant Pot reliability.

    In 2017, Cornell Capital bought the company for a total $500M of which $300M was financed by debt. Then 4 years later in 2021, it refinanced and added on debt, bringing the total debt to $535M. $245M was immediately paid out to shareholders as a dividend. Cornell Capital got paid back all the cash it invested in the company's acquisition, and then some. In 2023 due to high interest rates the company was no longer able to service its debt, costing the company ~$50M a year, and the company had to file Chapter 11.

  • by teo_zero on 10/26/23, 6:08 AM

    I wonder how much the author has traveled abroad, because when TFA mentions "the world", I don't recognize what I see here where I live: I've never found a pocorn button, for example, or moisture sensors, not even in the good old times. And Instant Pot is completely unknown, Covid notwithstanding.

  • by peteforde on 10/26/23, 1:06 AM

    I actually have one the the Panasonic microwaves whispered about at the end of the article, and it's been the best microwave I've ever owned. "Panasonic NNSC688S Mid-Size 1200W Inverter Microwave Oven, 1.3 Cuft, Black Stainless Steel" which Amazon sells for CAD$300, although I see one used is available for $180 - a steal, IMHO.

    The key word in the description is "inverter". I am very much in the pro-inverter camp. In an inverter microwave, power is supplied through an inverter circuit to supply a steady and constant amount of power throughout the cooking time without cutting in and out. So if you select 50% power, the microwave will deliver 50% power throughout. Inverter microwaves are also more energy efficient than standard microwaves.

  • by rsync on 10/26/23, 4:30 AM

    We have a Panasonic NE-1258R.

    It's a commercial kitchen microwave oven and is built like a tank.

    It requires a 20amp circuit and it has no turntable because it has two magnetrons.

    https://www.manualslib.com/products/Panasonic-Ne1258r-Commer...

    Recommended.

  • by hotnfresh on 10/26/23, 1:05 AM

    The best microwave I've ever used was probably from the early 80s. It was in my maternal grandparents' house.

    The controls were two knobs. There were no other controls. No start button. No open-door button. Both knobs felt Very Serious. There was no spinny platter thing, but it didn't seem to really do any worse than the new ones with it—but it was easier to clean. It was pretty big for a microwave.

    One knob was power. One knob was a timer. You turn the timer knob to start it. It physically ticks down until it dings (real bell, not a speaker) and stops. You pull the (heavy) handle on the door to open it. It's secured with (I suppose) one or more of those mechanisms where a flared tab goes between a pair of little wheels, so it's secure unless you pull fairly hard, no need for a release button.

    It was still mounted in the exact same place and working just as well as it did in the 80s and 90s, when my grandma moved out to live with my parents in the 2010s.

    I've seen a few kinda similar models on offer, but they're expensive and without feeling one in person I really doubt they're actually as good.

    (A bunch of the finishes on their very-modest poor-rural-town house—outlet and switch cover plates, some of the trim, the front door, the storm doors of all things, and the doorbell, were all luxury-tier by modern standards—some of those, I've never seen anything as good on any house built since 1970 or so, and I've been in some "nice" ones; some stuff's simply gotten worse, and I tell you what, the solid feel and butter-smooth action of some of those things really did make life better)

  • by harel on 10/26/23, 12:52 AM

    As soon as you open the site in Chrome it complains that my browser is stalking me (I know and don't care) and that this site does not work with it. So I closed it. More annoying than my browser's stalking habits is the assumption that one knows best and can decide for others what they should be using. This is the first time I see something like that. Hope it's the last too.

  • by ericpauley on 10/26/23, 12:34 AM

    The worst part about this article for me is that there is a reason for some people to buy new microwaves. Inverter microwaves (yes, these have been around a while) have become far more broadly available. This is a worthwhile upgrade for many users.

  • by ISL on 10/26/23, 5:02 AM

    We are considering purchasing a new microwave, so I dipped my toes into the review-water earlier this week. The Wirecutter folks have done an interesting job of disassembling the microwaves from many brands and visually demonstrating that they're all made by one manufacturer. Unsurprisingly, when they test them, they all perform the same, too:

    https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-microwave/

  • by da768 on 10/26/23, 12:38 AM

    Got a Breville recently, seemed like the only units that weren't the same as every others out there... Not sure it's more durable, but at least it's super quiet, I can mute beep sounds, I can change time and power while food is cooking, and it's got a stainless interior so there's no cheap paint that'll start falling off after a few months.

  • by huytersd on 10/26/23, 5:50 AM

    What is this article? It doesn’t even mention why microwaves suck besides handwavyly saying they break in a year (not my experience).

  • by notacoward on 10/26/23, 12:40 AM

    I have a Panasonic "Genius" microwave that I actually like quite well. The "inverter technology" does seem to cook more evenly than previous microwaves I've had, and the "air fryer" (not really) mode works very well for a bunch of frozen things that should be a bit crisp on the outside (e.g. samosas or taquitos). Day old fries often come out better than they were when fresh.

    Is it an amazing indispensable life-changing invention? No. But does it suck? Also no. The premise of the article is seriously flawed, and comes across as somebody who just didn't like anything but old-fashioned stove cooking (probably by someone else) in the first place.

  • by tantalor on 10/26/23, 12:17 AM

    This "your browser is stalking you" shit is annoying

  • by abosley on 10/26/23, 4:20 PM

    Did 15? seconds of fact checking the blog post since, as a home owner, it seemed wrong based on my little experience researching, purchasing and installing kitchen appliances in my own home. Midea controls 90% of the countertop microwave market. Even then, Panasonic, GE and others still manufacture their own. GE, whirlpool and Samsung control the Lionshare of the US market ~ 55% AND there is some evidence that the market for microwaves is growing at ~5% per year. I think there are better examples of total monopolies out there that the author could have chosen.

  • by raffraffraff on 10/26/23, 6:20 AM

    I still have my stainless steel Bosch microwave that I bought in 2004. It has no display, no buttons. Just two rotary knobs: power, and timer. Simplest thing in the world. I had to replace the turntable motor about 4 years ago, and the replacement part was a generic unbranded "microwave motor" that cost little.

    Any time I'm in someone else's kitchen and I just want "900w for 3 minutes" I curse the grid of buttons that show pictures of chickens and fish and who knows what else.

  • by f6v on 10/26/23, 5:27 AM

    Got the cheap no name microwave at my local supermarket with no reviews. It just works, I’m happy I didn’t go to Amazon for reviews.

  • by willcipriano on 10/26/23, 12:37 AM

    I'd like to see a Zojirushi microwave. I feel like they could make one that seems a little magical and worth the upgrade.

  • by jpalomaki on 10/26/23, 5:17 AM

    Couple of things I'm now looking at microwave: 1)inverter 2)no rotating plate.

    My understanding is that with inverter the microwave can actually adjust the power instead of doing the on/off/on/off cycle you get with the cheap ones.

    I guess the rotating plate is there, because it's hard to distribute the microwaves evenly inside the oven. Some time ago I tried to find one without the rotating plate, but the only ones I could find were professional ones (>$1k)

    Now at least Panasonic seems to have models that meet my criteria [1], but they are not on all markets. Haven't checked any reviews yet.

    [1] https://www.panasonic.com/au/consumer/household/microwave-ov...

  • by eduction on 10/26/23, 1:19 AM

    This is like a textbook example of Louis CK’s adage “everything is amazing and nobody’s happy.”

    Microwaves are great. Amazon will have a Farberware or RCA for $70 to my home in two days - including shipping!

    What exactly is the problem? No one has ever used them to do anything other than heat things up. I was a child of the 80s. No one ever used these supposed features the post complains are disappearing.

    Instant Pot. Introduced millions to pressure cooking. Pork shoulder or brisket in 30m instead of 3 hours. Same for beans. Mine stopped working after several months and I called the company. They sent me a new one, actually a nicer model than the old, for free, that week. And told me to throw the old one out. Years later it’s working great.

    Who cares if the company went bankrupt? Yes private equity seems to suck but guess what, you can still buy a cheap great Instant Pot.

    Then he has the nerve to complain about capitalism, the reason we have this stuff. Does the author think in the Soviet Union it was easy to get a microwave? Does the author think communist citizens lucky enough to own microwaves had all the features they could want, and could be one tenth as picky as he is?

    Please tell me in what system other than capitalism you get to publish your nitpicky complaints about your abundant selection of consumer electronics to the world at the click of a button, on your computer or phone or tablet, that you own and hook up to your broadband internet which is readily available to your heated and cooled home, in one of the most prosperous countries on earth, so you can sneer at capitalism, which literally is the reason you have all this.

    What a bizarre post.

    In summary, not every microwave sucks, and instant pot isn’t dead.

  • by mnky9800n on 10/26/23, 7:22 AM

    I wanted a table top oven, my flat doesn't have room to have a built in one. At the shops it was impossible to find simply an oven. Everything was some kind of oven, rotisserie, smoker, steamer, microwave, air fryer contraption. They all wanted 500+ euros for the honour of owning such a device. There were no knobs or buttons. Only a touch interface with dozens of icons with no description as to what they did. And when you use them, they seem to use all of their functionality with some kind of optimization routine to cook whatever it is you fancy. Finally I did find a simple oven (simple meaning, it has one function and that is too be an oven). But it shouldn't be so difficult.

  • by zeteo on 10/26/23, 12:41 AM

    I got rid of my microwave several years ago and don't miss it anymore. (It took a while to get used to its absence.) I still have an Instant Pot but use it very rarely, maybe once a month. Investing in a high quality set of pots and pans has made up for it: copper pots for things that need to be heated quickly (e.g. boiling water, which is almost as fast as the microwave in a copper pot) and high-quality cast iron for things that need to be heated thoroughly (e.g. frying, baking). I also own a toaster oven because I'm too lazy to toast bread in the frying pan :) That one is electronic, but you can still get analog toaster ovens I believe.

  • by uxp100 on 10/26/23, 12:17 PM

    Cool, I just bought a microwave that is so much better than the one I had.

    Things better about the modern microwave: It heats food faster despite the same power rating. It has a higher CFM vent which is noticeably better than what I had before at getting cooking gasses off my stove. It has a brighter stove light. The panel is completely blank aside from the time when not in use. (I find all the buttons kind of mentally disruptive, odd maybe.) The buttons are kind of annoying capacitive things, but other than that I’m very positive on it.

  • by bambax on 10/26/23, 6:17 AM

    Samsung, Panasonic, Siemens, LG, Toshiba, Sharp all have microwaves on offer. Are they all made by Midea? Seems unlikely. The diversity of models, sizes, prices is striking when searching online.

  • by teddyh on 10/26/23, 12:45 AM

    Technology Connections covered microwaves: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiS27feX8o0>

  • by theshrike79 on 10/26/23, 6:11 AM

    As a slight tangent, here's a weird thing for you to notice:

    No two people you know have the same microwave.

  • by jackson1way on 10/27/23, 9:16 AM

    I was a bit shocked reading all these comments, because many reflect exactly the issues I had with microwaves and I always thought I'm alone with that. When we moved in 2019 I had to buy a new one, living in Germany, you would usually go with BOSCH or SIEMENS, but at that time, all their models below 100 EUR looked almost identical! And of course had a loud beeping that you couldn't disable and generally looked low-quality. It took me quite a bit to find a decent microwave for around 100 EUR. It's a Samsung! A brand that in Germany is not used for kitchen appliances at all. Just TVs/phones etc. The exact model: Samsung MS23K3515AW/EG (not available on amazon.de anymore) There is a bit of a hit: The beeping returns on power loss. And you have to press 2 buttons for 3sec to disable it again, took me a while to remember them, since we have power loss only like once a year. I guess you could do a small sticker with the instructions. I count the "beeping off" not as a "great feature" - it's just common sense to me. But there is a great feature: the "endless wheel dial" to precisely set the timer in 10sec intervals! That thing is awesome. It's very smooth to turn, but has small clicks for each 10sec interval AND you can use it WHILE the microwave is already running, for example when your wife tells you "but the food has been out of the fridge since 30min" - so you go 10-20sec less. Pressing the START button immidiatly starts the microwave with a 30sec runtime. Press it again and you add 30sec or just use the "wheel dial".

    Wanna heat up a cup of milk from the fridge? 70sec. Only half a cup? 40sec. Wife wants the milk extra hot? 80sec. Milk wasn't in the fridge? Minus 10-20sec - and so on. For families it's really useful.

    It's 4 years old now and used 10 times a days, and runs still fine. It's a bit loud and the glass is very dark so you can't peek inside (probably the biggest disadvantage).

  • by tbihl on 10/26/23, 1:02 AM

    Well, my instant pot is a piece of junk. I got it ca. 2019 to replace my worn out rice cooker, and within 2-3 years the control dial failed. Now I have to spin the dial at a wide range of speeds while various pushing on, pulling on, and whispering incantations to the stupid thing. Worth making extra waste to replace? No, but it sure makes me mad that I need 90 seconds to set the cook timer.

  • by thefringthing on 10/28/23, 4:31 PM

  • by tptacek on 10/26/23, 12:23 AM

    This is basically a blog summary of Amanda Mull's Atlantic story from this summer:

    https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2023/06/insta...

  • by diziet on 10/26/23, 6:58 AM

    I've used around 15 different microwave ovens consistently though my live, from cheap to relatively expensive ones, between homes I've lived in, apartments I've rented and offices we've furnished. Each one lasted at least 3 years, with some lasting over 10 without any problems.

    I've had vastly different experiences than the author.

  • by Aloha on 10/26/23, 5:05 AM

    I have a fancy GE Microwave, its a built in, over the stove job, that is also a convection oven (a lousy one perhaps), but when used in hybrid convection cook mode, its pretty spiffy.

    The boyfriend does not like using it with the moisture sensor active (he strongly likes to cover his food with a lid, to prevent splatter), but I find just a paper towel is good enough for me - and when left to its normal pre-programmed modes it works surprisingly well when I just let the intelligence the engineers at GE programmed into it at the factory do its thing.

    I am also the least likely person in our household to actually use one, I have a perfectly good stove and oven, and I'm much more likely to warm my leftovers with that. Then it doesn't come out being uneven in temp, with a weird rubbery texture, or devoid of moisture.

    Of course - it cost 600 dollars - as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.

    The wife and boyfriend however? the microwave was for them.

  • by meristohm on 10/26/23, 2:41 AM

    We don't like our LG microwave capacitive-only buttons or the periodic "I'm done!" cute chime, but it works and I use it multiple times a day, because I mostly eat cooked grain and pulse sprouts plus vegetables (vs GERD, and because I like fiber), and a microwave with inverter is the best way to quickly cook this and beets, for example, without boiling over. I set it to 30-40% power (of 1100W max) and increase the time accordingly. My feeling is that low power longer time gives the heat energy time to propagate and minimize hotspots. I stir it all once partway through, often when I add the zucchini or other quicker-cooking veg.

    We use our InstantPot daily, too, for all sorts of foods and especially steel-cut oats or oat groats, scheduled to be ready in the morning.

  • by zbrozek on 10/26/23, 12:24 AM

    I look forward to direct synthesis solid state microwave ovens. I want to actually get power control.

  • by MattPalmer1086 on 10/26/23, 8:24 AM

    It's fascinating to me how many people here yearn for a simple set of controls. Two dials, maybe physical not digital. I feel the same way.

    I can't remember if it was in "The Design of Everyday Things", or "The Inmates are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive us Crazy", but a story is recounted about trying to buy a usable video recorder.

    He assumed that the expensive ones would have solved the UX issues (like being able to set the time correctly!), but no. The more expensive ones had control interfaces for all kinds of useless functions and were incomprehensible. He just wanted something easy to use, and ended up buying the cheapest model.

  • by dataflow on 10/26/23, 5:38 AM

    Anyone have experience with Panasonic's "Cyclonic Inverter" microwaves? [1] Are they good?

    [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEILEEPYiEs

  • by ProllyInfamous on 10/26/23, 3:03 PM

    POWER [setting on microwaves] -user, reporting:

    I just purchased an air fryer [which has greatly reduced my microwave usage, generally]. I specifically purchased the unit because it had analogue controls, including dual twist-dials (one for time, one for temperature).

    As an added bonus, it has a single "DING" from an actual mechanically-struck bell... and it cost 1/3rd of the digital [controls] model I had initially considered purchasing.

    To not leave anybody "hanging," the air fryer I purchased was the in-store Mainstays [WalMart] cheapo unit, which air-fries for one.5 PERFECTLY.

  • by progne on 10/26/23, 12:41 AM

    ”what can we learn from this? i don't know. capitalism will destroy everything it touches.”

    Microwaves are better in countries with less capitalism?

  • by leephillips on 10/26/23, 2:16 PM

    When I moved a few years ago I decided to try existing without a microwave oven to see how it went. I haven’t bothered to buy one, and I don’t miss it. I don’t eat crap like frozen TV dinners, so I have little use for this appliance. My point is, try going without one for a while. You may find it’s one of those things that you think you need because everyone has one, but in fact has little utility, and is just something else that you need to clean. Then, get rid of your garbage disposal.

  • by scblock on 10/26/23, 12:27 AM

    There's no "why" in this "why" post.

  • by helpfulmandrill on 10/26/23, 10:26 AM

    I've had my microwave for 16 years. Was thinking of replacing it with new one with a smaller counter footprint. Now thinking perhaps I won't.

  • by tim333 on 10/26/23, 1:21 PM

    People say this - you can't buy a microwave without all the flashing annoying junk but you can. In the UK for example Argos has this https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8999247

    no electronic junk, 4.8/5 reviews. But people seem to want to buy the annoing computers stuck in there versions.

  • by softskunk on 10/26/23, 8:18 AM

    I have a combination oven that I bought from MediaMarkt (European electronics retailer) a few months ago, since the small studio I live in didn’t come with one. It has microwave, grill, convection and standard heating options. The controls aren’t particularly intuitive but it works fine and seems to be of decently high quality.

  • by sfmike on 10/26/23, 4:53 AM

    Not to be tin foil hat, and I have no idea what I'm saying, but something just felt unnatural and wrong about microwaves, so years ago started using a toaster oven and I use it now over microwave and oven as well for toasting and baking everything. Please tell me how I'm doing it wrong my mind is open.

  • by silverlake on 10/26/23, 1:52 PM

    There has been plenty of innovation in microwaves. Commercial kitchens use speed ovens, a combination oven + microwave. The oven cooks the outside of food as expected, the microwave cooks the inside faster than normal. See your local Subway sandwich shop for an example.

    And Instapot was killed by private equity.

  • by gumballindie on 10/26/23, 12:30 PM

    Opening this page in Chrome i get the following message: "your browser is stalking you."

    I love this. I will adopt it.

  • by natch on 10/26/23, 12:53 AM

    As far as I'm concerned there is only one microwave on the market worth buying.

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074RCGYLB

    ONE dial. One. Zero buttons. Perfect.

    It does not have a turntable, but it's never needed one.

  • by foxylad on 10/26/23, 1:01 AM

    We have a Phillips microwave built in 1987, still going strong. In this domain, older is WAAAAAAY better.

  • by armchairhacker on 10/26/23, 1:08 AM

    How do we avoid this problem and sustain companies who make long-lasting products?

    - Subscription service?

    - Annual government funding?

    - Annual private funding for "best product in category"?

    Also how are some companies who make long-lasting tools which are apparently good quality (such as Lodge, PYREX, Patagonia) seemingly doing just fine?

  • by Ekaros on 10/26/23, 6:24 AM

    I love how my Samsung with nearly all the features does not do the microwave part evenly... And now I use cheap one that was left in the "condo"...

    Maybe I need to look into replacing it with slightly better model with inverter... As power scaling might be useful.

  • by Eliah_Lakhin on 10/26/23, 1:27 AM

    I moved to a new place around 8 years ago. In my kitchen, I have all the usual kitchen essentials, and perhaps even some less common items, such as a Cappuccino machine.

    But I don't have a microwave and never consider buying one. I used to live without it. When I order fast food, couriers usually deliver a warm meal to me. When I buy prepared food at a local grocery store, I always ask the salesperson to reheat it right in their microwave at the store. When I cook food at home, it will be hot. If I leave something in the fridge, it's not a big deal for me to eat it chilled later. Chilled food does not lose its nutritional value anyway.

    The reason I decided to live without a microwave is that I can't find a device without any built-in smart-scheduling functions; instead, I want one that would offer me complete manual control.

    What I really need is a device with three simple features:

    1. A manual knob to control the microwave power generator output.

    2. A manual shut-off timer knob.

    3. A manual grill spiral knob.

  • by EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK on 10/27/23, 5:41 AM

    I remember a time when Panasonic microwaves cost a fortune (like a monthly salary), they came in huge boxes with thick colorful cooking books and included a subscription to real, offline Panasonic cooking courses.

  • by mbar84 on 10/27/23, 2:40 AM

    I have a microwave with two knobs: power and time. Both controls are haptic and I imagine the circuitry is the same as what might have been built in the '60s. It's perfectly fine.

  • by WirelessGigabit on 10/27/23, 3:34 PM

    Is there something wrong with my browser that makes all sentences start with a lowercase letter? The way I read makes it really hard to follow the flow of the text.

  • by SanjayMehta on 10/26/23, 4:51 AM

    I have a really old microwave made in Korea which I bought used 20 years ago.

    It has two mechanical knobs: power and time. You can hear the timer whirring down.

    That’s all I need.

    Live long and prosper, nameless microwave.

  • by corethree on 10/26/23, 4:49 AM

    There's one feature that changed the game. Alexa. Now I don't punch in those stupid numbers.

    I just go "Computer! microwave for 3 minutes and 30 seconds!" bam!

  • by olyjohn on 10/26/23, 5:37 AM

    I'm gonna say it. Instant Pots suck. They're too small compared to a crock pot and aren't really fast for a lot of things. Most things that you can cook quickly on a stove take forever due to pressurizing and depressurizing. I can cook noodles faster on a stove top. Rice is barely faster than my old rice cooker, and if I'm going to make a stew or something, does 4 hours really matter vs 8 hours? I suppose I could start the stew at noon instead of in the morning... But I'm still not gonna get a stew by coming home and cooking it in the evening at the last minute.

  • by oldnetguy on 10/26/23, 10:25 PM

    I would really like to be able to read this on the browser I want without some box in the way. I'm not changing a browser just to read this.

  • by bazylevnik0 on 10/26/23, 8:52 AM

    Have an idea, the space microwave - without this time bullshit but only count of circles while rotating in the loop.Slogan: believe or not, will be hot!

  • by piuantiderp on 10/26/23, 10:00 AM

    My late grandmother had a microwave from the 80s. Still working to this day, not even sure it had any sort of maintenance.

  • by philistine on 10/26/23, 3:47 AM

    That website has the only banner ad I have clicked since 2010. Not going to buy the breadboard, but my curiosity was piqued.

  • by t0bia_s on 10/26/23, 7:24 AM

    Our family don't use microwave over 10 years. I don't miss it.

  • by LRVNHQ on 10/26/23, 1:09 AM

    I'm not an advanced or regular microwave user (try keeping a straight face while talking like that about microwaves lol, but I use it maybe once or twice a month averaged over the year) but frankly I don't see any performance issue with my cheap microwave compared to what one could expect from a microwave. Put food in, wait 4-5 minutes, food comes out hot.

    What infuriates me are vacuum cleaners. To make them more "eco-friendly" it's even regulated in the EU now that vacuum cleaners may not use more than 900 watts. But it's not like vacuum cleaner technology has improved tenfold since I had my good old 1500 watts vacuum cleaner in the 2000s (rip). So how did they achieve this magic? Well, new vacuum cleaners don't vacuum for shit, that's how.

  • by trimethylpurine on 10/26/23, 6:18 AM

    You've done what looks to be a sincere job of blaming capitalism while complaining about a manufacturing monopoly hosted by a self proclaimed communist party. That is to say, for me, your example paints a dark picture of communism being weaponized against capitalism through the exploitation of well meaning globalist agenda. Trust in good foreign relations, in this example, has allowed a foreign bad actor to skirt around antitrust rules. Capitalism sure has its flaws, but naivety is an aspect of politics, not economics.

  • by simonebrunozzi on 10/26/23, 9:12 AM

    > what can we learn from this? I don't know. Capitalism will destroy everything it touches.

    Sad, but somewhat true. Brilliant post.