Guitar Hero II

Guitar Hero II is a music rhythm game developed by Harmonix, published by Activision and distributed by RedOctane. It is the second installment in the Guitar Hero series and is the sequel to Guitar Hero. It was first released for the PlayStation 2 in November 2006 and then for the Xbox 360 in April 2007, with additional content not originally in the PlayStation 2 version.

Like in the original Guitar Hero, the player uses a peripheral in the shape of a solid-body electric guitar to simulate playing rock music as notes scroll towards the player. Most of the gameplay from the original game remains intact., provides new modes and note combinations. The game features more than 40 popular licensed songs, many of them cover versions recorded for the game, spanning five decades (from the 1960s to the 2000s). The PlayStation 2 version of Guitar Hero II can be purchased individually or in a bundle that packages the game with a cherry red Gibson SG guitar controller. The Xbox 360 version of the game is offered in a bundle that packages the game with a white Gibson Explorer guitar controller. Both of these controllers are wired, but RedOctane also sells a wireless controller for the PlayStation 2.

Lumix

Lumix is Panasonic's brand of digital cameras, ranging from pocket point-and-shoot models to digital SLRs.

Compact digital cameras DMC-LC5 and DMC-F7 were the first products of the Lumix series, released in 2001. They are equipped with Leica lenses.

Indeed, many Lumix models are fitted with Leica lenses (e.g. Nocticron or Elmarit lenses), designed by Leica's German optical engineers, and are assembled in Japan. Others are rebranded as Leica cameras with different cosmetic stylings. Leica had a similar relationship with Minolta in the past, where late model Leica SLRs (and some 35 mm point-and-shoot models) were strongly based on Minolta bodies.

Most Lumix cameras use differing releases of the Panasonic Venus Engine for digital image processing; the original version (2002) was followed by II (2004), Plus (2005), III (2006), IV (2008), HD, V (2009), and VI, HD II, FHD (2010).

Panasonic produces most of Leica's branded digital point and shoot cameras in Japan, but not film cameras, the Leica M8 or Leica M9 digital rangefinder cameras, the X1 and X2 digital cameras or the Digital Modul R digital camera back for the Leica R9 film SLR.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 is a digital camera with HD video recording capability that is part of the Micro Four Thirds System. Though commonly referred to as a DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera, it has no mirror or optical viewfinder, but has instead both a fold-out LCD screen and a (somewhat higher resolution) electronic viewfinder. Recording is to a SDHC or SDXC flash memory card in AVCHD or M-JPEG format, giving up to high quality HD 1080P video at 24fps with up to 2 hours per take on the USA or Canadian versions (for the European version it's up to 30 minutes per take due to a European tax on video cameras). The GH2 is also notable for offering 1080/50i and 60i (interlaced) recording modes (compatible with broadcasting) as well as 24p, though 25p and 30p are not supported. The Micro Four Thirds System (crop factor 2 when compared to 35 mm still) does not offer the extreme shallow-focus effects possible with full-frame cameras. Optical image stabilisation is available on Panasonic MFT zoom lenses, and power zoom and power focus is available on some Panasonic X series lenses.

Panasonic

Panasonic Corporation (パナソニック株式会社, Panasonikku Kabushiki-gaisha), formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (松下電器産業株式会社, Matsushita Denki Sangyō Kabushiki-gaisha), is a Japanese multinational electronics corporation headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka, Japan.

The company was founded in 1918 and has grown to become one of the largest Japanese electronics producers alongside Sony, Hitachi, Toshiba and Canon Inc. In addition to electronics, it offers non-electronic products and services such as home renovation services. Panasonic is the world's fourth-largest television manufacturer by 2012 market share.

Panasonic has a primary listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the Nikkei 225 and TOPIX indices. It has a secondary listing on the Nagoya Stock Exchange.

Name

From 1935 to October 1, 2008, the company name was "Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd." On January 10, 2008, the company announced that it would change its name to "Panasonic Corporation", in effect on October 1, 2008, to conform with its global brand name "Panasonic". The name change was approved at a shareholders' meeting on June 26, 2008 after consultation with the Matsushita family.