(Depending on the model) if you microwave, for example, on 50% power for 2 minutes, it will alternate 10 sec of cooking and 10 sec of not cooking for 2 minutes, so in the end neither of your scenarios come to fruition
This is for the “cheap” microwaves. They cannot operate the magnetron at partial power, it’s all or nothing, so it actually powers off for a period to compensate for that.
Inverters however can operate at partial power levels. This means more consistent cooking power and better efficiency. But inverters are more expensive and most people never change the power level, so the cheaper microwaves don’t use them.
(Depending on the model) if you microwave, for example, on 50% power for 2 minutes, it will alternate 10 sec of cooking and 10 sec of not cooking for 2 minutes, so in the end neither of your scenarios come to fruition
This is for the “cheap” microwaves. They cannot operate the magnetron at partial power, it’s all or nothing, so it actually powers off for a period to compensate for that.
Inverters however can operate at partial power levels. This means more consistent cooking power and better efficiency. But inverters are more expensive and most people never change the power level, so the cheaper microwaves don’t use them.