51¶¯Âþ

The trend for ever tinier gadgets and appliances has now hit microwave manufacturers. Market-leader Samsung of South Korea says it will be possible to make them as small as a four-slice toaster. That hasn’t been possible until now because the step-up transformer that delivers the several kilovolts needed for the magnetron has had to be made from thick steel with many turns of thick wire. Samsung says it can now cut the transformer weight by 95 per cent and its size by 75 per cent (GB 2367196). The trick is to boost the input mains frequency to around 20 kilohertz, making it possible to use a small transformer with a light ferrite core and fewer wire turns.