ASUS announced two new DVD-ROM's today. Along with 18x DVD-ROM and and 48x CD-ROM read speeds, the DVD-E818A2 and DVD-E818A2T are the first drives to support the 5x DVD-RW DL format.

Catering to users who require high quality multimedia experiences, ASUS, producer of top-notch optical drives, has today released the ASUS DVD-E818A2/A2T. This series of optical drives is the world’s first ODD that supports 5X DVD-RW DL, and provides users with cutting-edge multimedia experiences backed with superior playback capabilities and high-speed data transfers; while built-in advanced ASUS exclusive technologies will provide a quieter, more stable and higher performance multimedia environment.

The ASUS DVD-E818A2 and ASUS DVD-E818A2T provide leading-edge multimedia experiences with the ability to read 5X DVD-RW DL - the brand new industry format. With this support, users will be able to view high quality videos directly burnt into DVDs from camcorders and obtain fabulous playback capacities. It also allows users to access all CDs, DVD-ROM/DVD±R/ DVD±RW/DVD-RAM and DVD-Video discs.
No word yet on pricing or availability. As we find out more, we'll let you know. In the mean time, ASUS's entire press release can be found here.