In August 1998, Sharp released the AL-1000 family of digital laser copier/printers. The series consisted of three machines, the AL-1000, AL-1010 and AL-1041. All featured a copy speed of 10 pages-per-minute (ppm) with a print speed of 8 ppm. The base AL-1000 and AL-1010 models offered a user-installed printer capability upgrade. The high-end AL-1041 model included scan once/print many and print capabilities. Targeted at copier users in small businesses and home offices, the series was distributed through superstores, catalogs, and warehouse clubs. Sharp later used the same engine for an AL-1200 series which offered the same capabilities as the AL-1000 machines, but featured an increased copy speed of 12 ppm.
Released in November 1998, the Xerox WorkCentre XD100/102 digital copier/printers use the same 600-dpi Sharp engine found in the Sharp AL-1000/1010/1041 line. Unlike the Sharp machines, Xerox shipped the XD models with the printing capability installed. The XD offered a copy speed of 10 ppm and a print speed of 8 ppm. Aimed at the small office and home users, Xerox has aggressively marketed the XD100 series through superstores, catalogs, wholesale distribution and dealer channels. The combination of rising placements and high cartridge list prices makes this engine an attractive remanufacturing opportunity.
This Sharp engine features a dual-component developing system using a drum cartridge and a toner cartridge. Both toner and developer are housed in the toner cartridge and have OEM weights of 215g and 190g respectively. The XD100 series ships with a starter cartridge.