Nope, that's not the case. It's for bag popcorn. The technology connections video talks about it

As a single datapoint ….

I decided to spend a little more on my microwave and looked for:

• 1200w, highest power supported on a standard outlet
• reputable brand
• big enough for a platter, not just a plate
• +30s button, by far the most commonly used

I see 15 “specialty” buttons )yes, including a popcorn button); I find auto-defrost useful but never use the rest.

Worth the cost: it’s over ten years old, maybe 15, and still as good as new

Ahh, Dr. Redenbacher himself.

Fuck yea

Easy:

Some microwaves just set a timer, like 2:30 and call it a day.
Others do power changes like 100% for the first minute then 75% for the next 2.
Others have sensors and logic and compute the actual best time to stop popping based on physical conditions of the inside of the microwave

Orville has no idea what version you have, so they give you an algorithm instead

Yeah our microwaves seem to have a defrost button that then goes to type/weight.... A popcorn button, which has been around for 15ish years, a 30 second button, which many people just hit for everything.. and then the power setting which you end up hitting 9 buttons every time because you can never get the order right on if it's power 70% time start or 70 power time start or time 70 power start or who the fuck knows what so you just try to remember to put the frozen food in the fridge the night before so it's thawed enough to do what you need with it

If that's so then why do some of them ask you to tell it which of the 2 standard sized popcorn bags it is, with those being the only 2 choices? Probably because they aren't all the same

I dunno, I'm in the US and nothing you said applies to my microwave.

Could it be that you're just looking at the wrong brand(s)?

Anyway, all of this talk made me think of that 30Rock episode where Jack is tasked with designing a new microwave for GE lol

The popcorn button on my microwave works perfectly every time. With popcorn bags.

I do know that this is not the case with all microwaves, but it absolutely can work.

I can't think of a single thing that the microwave does better than it's traditional counterpart.

It's pretty much understood that you're going to give up a little bit of quality in return for time saving and convenience. That's like the whole thing.

My button works just fine.

A half popped kernel is referred to as an "old maid"

Thank you. It's vile tasting.

Kettle corn only... And take my secret: top with hint of cane sugar ground to icing sugar consistency... Just a soupscon

Can I bitch about something since you're an appliance repair tech (not at you, just with you)?

GE french-door fridge, freezer. Less than 3-years-old. Freezer drawer.

Evap fan goes out. It's pretty corroded. I do wonder if someone spilled something in the back of fridge but I can't see a sign of residue beside the corrosion (Still, no protective shroud above the fan from fluids dripping down the back). Bench-tested it; dead. Condensate drain seems fine. Order $100 replacement. Still doesn't turn on. I know control boards can fail from a result of this, too. I check output power from board, and it all seems good. Tested new fan; it's good too.

Before this, I realize the evaporator connector harness is flush with the floor of the fridge and downstream of the condensate drain pan. Water literally pooled in the 6-prong connector harness that is sealed into the floor of the freezer. Dried it out, cleaned it off as best as I could with CRC QD cleaner, etc. but I'm not getting the same voltage I'm getting on the 12V red from the board -- closer to 6 -- which I can only deduce means a short or corroded connector underneath the freezer... So now gotta cut it out.

I'm not the only one who's had issues with this, and it reallllllly feels not just like a poor design but planned obsolescence.

The sad thing is that as far as I can tell, GE is probably still the best fridge company for bang for buck? Maybe LG or BOSCH if willing to pay premium?