The toaster oven was normalized and introduced to the market before the microwave oven.
Toaster Oven: The first toaster oven was patented in 1915 by William Hadaway, and it was originally designed to be used in restaurants. However, it wasn't until the 1940s and 1950s that toaster ovens became more popular in households. These appliances offered a convenient way to toast bread and perform other cooking tasks in a smaller, more compact form compared to traditional ovens.
Microwave Oven: The microwave oven, as we know it today, was invented by Percy Spencer in 1946. He discovered the heating effect of microwaves when he noticed a candy bar melting in his pocket near a magnetron (a vacuum tube that produces microwaves) during an experiment. The first commercial microwave oven, called the "Radarange," was introduced in 1947 by Raytheon, the company where Spencer worked. However, early microwave ovens were too large and expensive for widespread household use. It wasn't until the late 1960s and 1970s that microwave ovens became more affordable and gained popularity in homes.
In summary, the toaster oven was normalized and available in households before the microwave oven, with toaster ovens gaining popularity in the 1940s and 1950s, and microwave ovens becoming more widespread in the late 1960s and 1970s.