Your needs, this model
Does it fit your priorities?
Can a compatible USB desktop capture color Legal originals from both the glass and ordinary feeder, while retaining 300 suitable Legal input positions?
Yes. The exact USB capture instructions use the glass/SPF placement routines, which support Legal originals; both ordinary paper sources support Legal. The material and software restrictions still apply.
Explore this need in the finder →Does the one-sided-to-two-sided copy function establish automatic desktop print duplex?
No. The actual copy routine is documented, but a corresponding desktop driver print-duplex route is not established by it.
Explore this need in the finder →Does this exact model provide included Ethernet printing and scanning?
No. The actual computer interfaces are USB and printer-only parallel; an Ethernet arrangement is not established.
Explore this need in the finder →A copier-centered MFP with a USB scan requirement
The Sharp AL-1641CS combines monochrome laser printing and copying with color-capable document capture. It has a glass that accepts Legal originals, a 30-sheet document feeder for ordinary one-sided originals, and two standard paper sources. The useful computer workflow depends on USB and the appropriate Sharp software.
The original guide also covers AL-1631, which lacks the printer and scanner functions in its comparison table. Those model columns matter. A shared illustration of the copier body is not permission to assign computer functions to every name on the cover.
USB and parallel do different jobs
The guide explicitly restricts scanning to USB with its supported Windows environment. Parallel is a printer-only arrangement. Someone who can print through an old parallel connection should not expect the scanner to appear in the same application without establishing the USB installation.
Sharp documents TWAIN and WIA software, Sharpdesk and Button Manager. Panel-started capture uses a Windows event destination, so the chosen application must actually be installed and correctly associated. Test that destination and inspect the saved file; a responsive scanner button alone does not establish a completed document workflow.
The application list includes fax software if installed. That is a computer-program destination, not evidence that this MFP contains an analog fax modem. Historic Windows support likewise needs a real compatibility check on the intended present computer.
Legal originals fit both documented scan routes
The USB capture procedure explicitly refers to placing originals on the glass or in the SPF, and the original-placement section supports originals up to 8.5 by 14 inches. That establishes a useful Legal-capable glass as well as the ordinary feeder route. The color CCD supports color capture even though printed output remains monochrome.
The feeder has a 30-original limit and its own size, weight and condition restrictions. Sharp warns that panel-started SPF scanning accepts only one original unless using Sharpdesk. Choose the actual application workflow before expecting an entire packet to reach one computer file.
A feeder that processes a packet is not necessarily a two-sided scanner. The read instructions establish ordinary one-sided capture without confirming automatic duplex capture or single-pass duplex mechanics. Check both sides and page order when preparing originals.
Two-sided copies are a separate capability
The actual copy chapter supports making two-sided output from one-sided originals. For the glass routine, the user supplies the next original for the reverse side, and Letter paper is required. The multi-bypass cannot be used for that two-sided-copy mode.
Those instructions do not establish automatic two-sided printing from a desktop driver. This assessment keeps that computer-print feature unconfirmed rather than extending a copier control into every application workflow.
Capacity and speed should describe the correct job
The standard tray provides 250 positions and the multi-bypass up to 50 suitable sheets, with material-dependent limits. Letter and Legal appear in the actual ordinary-paper table. Envelopes and other special media are separate individual-feed jobs, not large automatic stacks.
Sharp separately declares 12 Letter pages per minute for printing and 16 for copying. Only the print figure is used for computer-print speed. Neither that rate nor a consumable-life estimate establishes a recommended monthly workload.
Allow the complete working footprint
The specification distinguishes unit-body width from a larger overall width. Leave room for the bypass, feeder, raised glass cover and servicing. The stated weight excludes the TD and drum cartridges, so it is not treated as a complete loaded measurement. Inspect those separate supplies and verify the electrical label before relying on an earlier machine.
Key details at a glance
| Color printing | No |
|---|---|
| Scanner | Yes |
| Copying | Yes |
| Fax | No |
| Flatbed scanner | Yes |
| Automatic document feeder | Yes |
| Color scanning | Yes |
| Instructed envelope handling | Yes |
| Included ordinary-paper capacity | 300 sheets |
| Document-feeder capacity | 30 sheets |
| Declared one-sided mono Letter rate | 12 pages/min |
| Unit-body width | 20.4 in |
| Unit-body depth | 19.4 in |
| Unit-body height | 15 in |
| Imaging engine | laser |
Use the exact model’s instructions for operating limits, supplied equipment and version differences.
Paper, software and setup details
Print-rate conditions
The exact specification separately declares 12 printing pages/minute and 16 copying pages/minute on 8.5 × 11-inch Letter. Only 12 is assigned as the Letter print rate. No maker recommended monthly interval or maximum duty is established.
Paper handling
The included ordinary tray holds 250 sheets and the multi-bypass holds up to 50 suitable sheets, varying with material. The actual paper table supports Letter and Legal in both ordinary sources, giving 300 conditional positions. Special media and envelopes feed individually. Two-sided copying from one-sided originals is documented, with Letter-only glass copying and no multi-bypass for that mode; this is not used to establish automatic desktop print duplex.
Scanning arrangement
The exact AL-1641CS has a color CCD, a Legal-capable glass and a 30-sheet SPF. The USB scan procedure explicitly places originals on either route and refers to the original-placement instructions, which support up to 8.5 × 14-inch Legal. Letter and Legal ordinary flatbed/simplex feeder capture are retained. Panel-started SPF scanning is limited to one original unless using Sharpdesk. Automatic two-sided capture and single-pass mechanics remain unconfirmed.
Computer and mobile connections
USB 1.1 supports the documented compatible desktop print/scan arrangement. The parallel connection is explicitly printer-only and does not establish a computer-scan bridge. No ordinary Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct or native mobile protocol is established. The simpler AL-1631 has neither the printer nor scanner function in the exact comparison table.
Supplies and declared yields
The original supply table names AL-110TD toner/developer at approximately 4,000 Letter copies under 5% toned-area conditions and a factory-included declaration around 2,000. AL-100DR is the separate drum with an approximate 18,000-sheet declaration. These are supply estimates, not recommended monthly duty or actual remaining contents.
Software and support
The original guide supplies SHARP GDI printing, TWAIN/WIA scanner software, Sharpdesk and Button Manager. Scanning requires USB and supported Windows 98/Me/2000/XP in the original procedure; Windows 95/NT4.0 or parallel are print-only. A panel scan event needs the actual Windows application destination. An installed fax application destination does not provide an integrated fax modem.
Electrical edition and setup
The US/Canada original guide specifies 120 V, 60 Hz. Unit-body dimensions are 20.4 × 19.4 × 15.0 inches; a wider 23.9-inch overall width is separately declared and should inform operating clearance. Weight explicitly excludes TD and drum cartridges, so complete loaded weight remains unknown. Allow feeder, glass and bypass access.
Sources for this assessment
Find a printer for your routine.
Match color output, scanning, connections and paper handling, then compare the exact models.