microwave

Man accused of trying to buy microwave with $1 million bill

We all seek solutions to our financial issues.

Some turn out to be imperfect. Take this one, tried recently by a gentleman who allegedly walked into a Wal-Mart in Lexington, N.C., in order to buy a microwave, a vacuum cleaner, and other unspecified items.

You see, his inventive notion was to proffer a $1 million bill and claim that it was perfectly legal tender.

The way the Winston-Salem Journal has it, Michael Anthony Fuller, 53 was merely being asked to pay $476 for his electronic and other items.

Presumably, he imagined that he would received $999,524 in change … Read more

Microwave concept projects its innards

I had an incident recently where oatmeal bubbled over the top of the bowl and coated my microwave with a gloppy mess. If only I had a microwave with a built-in projector, I would have seen it coming much more clearly.

Designers Hwang Jungjoon and Lee Jaeryong are already on top of this issue with a concept that melds a microwave and a projector. It's called the "Proinjector," which sounds more like a fancy turkey prep accessory than a kitchen appliance.

The idea is that the projector captures what's happening inside and projects it against the kitchen wall. You don't have to squint through the thick front window of your microwave to see if the chicken cacciatore is about to explode.… Read more

Microwave cooks to a different tune

Kitchen appliances don't usually offer much to excite the ear. At best, when a task is completed, they signal with a simple "beep."

And it's not to be unexpected; all it is meant to do is alert the user that something is ready.

There may not be a plethora of information available and tech specs seem to be non-existent, but the Argentinian company, BGH, is producing a microwave that cooks to a different tune. The BGH Quick Chef Music incorporates a USB port that lets users upload a song to be played instead of the all-too-familiar … Read more

Microwave plays YouTube videos while you wait

Ugh. There's no worse first-world problem than having to wait for your food to come out of the microwave.

Thanks to a group of young developers, you can now watch YouTube videos on your microwave while you're waiting for those delicious little White Castle burgers. Mmmm.

The uWave is basically an HP TouchPad connected to a microwave, but its functionality is so much more than that.… Read more

Rewrite history with a retro microwave

The Nostalgia Electrics RMO-400 Microwave Oven is part of a Retro Series collection and looks like it could easily belong in a kitchen of yesteryear--except that it is a microwave. The ubiquitous appliance came to prominence in the '70s and '80s, but to be fair, commercial models were available as far back as the '40s. It is doubtful, however, that any of them resembled this unit. But really, none of that matters--the microwave does look pretty cool.

In use, the 800-watt microwave supplies all modern features that consumers have come to expect, including a turntable and 12 preprogrammed settings. The … Read more

Microwave thinks outside the boxy

Microwaves are anything but uncommon; the ubiquitous appliances have managed to work their way into practically every corner of our lives. As for actually being in the corner, the boxy shape has always been a hindrance, but sometimes the corner happens to be the best place in the kitchen to place it. So, it gets angled in, and we learn to live with the resulting wasted space. Or, one could pick up a microwave that happens to have a rounded back.

The Whirlpool WMC20005YD MaxStar Microwave is made to sit in the corner. Far from being a punishment, the space-efficient … Read more

Microwave doesn't do it with smoke

Microwaves are no strangers to convenience. They are perfect little appliances when it comes to meal-making magic; just take a food product out of the freezer, follow the directions that were so thoughtfully printed on the wrapper and--just like magic--a ready-made meal appears. Even for those who prefer to actually cook a meal the old-fashioned way, the microwave can be a useful tool for more than just heating up leftovers.

The Bertazzoni KO 30 PROX Ventilation Microwave Oven offers something for everybody. The double-duty microwave, styled to match Bertazzoni's Design Series and Professional Series appliances, installs over the range, … Read more

Nintendo 3DS microwaved in the name of insanity

Nintendo has a lot going for it right now, but none of that really matters to Microwave Theater host Kenny Irwin, who maniacally microwaves electronics and other miscellaneous objects.

The latest victim is a mint aqua blue Nintendo 3DS, which is completely incinerated in a four-minute video that is beyond absurd.

After setting the microwave to full power, the $250 3DS takes about half a minute to explode and burst into flames. Be sure to turn down your volume after the 2:30 mark, as the narrator can't seem to contain his excitement at destroying the portable game console. After scraping off the burned remains with a spatula, he offers it for sale for nearly a thousand dollars. What a bargain.

The only common sense found in the video is the warning that people should not attempt this at home. … Read more

Learn how to cook from the microwave

The microwave doesn't have a particularly great reputation for producing quality meals. Sometimes, this isn't necessarily even the fault of the appliance. Cooks of any and all levels attack the box, subjecting it to creations both good and bad alike. While many a recipe of dubious heritage has gleaned the inner walls of microwaves everywhere, it is not uncommon for the microwave to be used for great cooking. It's just a matter of users knowing what they are doing. Well, users or the microwave itself, that is.

The Dacor DMW2420S Distinctive 24-inch microwave has advanced features that … Read more

Cell towers to track electricity potential

Wind data provider Onsemble announced today that it's completed a sensor network capable of tracking the wind data near 95 percent of the wind farms in Texas.

The Onsemble Network sensors, which collect data on wind speed, direction, and temperature, were placed on cell phone towers between 80 meters and 120 meters above the ground. As with other wind data sensor systems, the data is relayed back to a central hub and analyzed by a computer program to predict future behavior.

In the case of wind forecasting, Onsemble says collecting wind speeds at such heights, close to the height … Read more