PAX East rapidly approaches, which means you’re probably starting your packing list right about now. And whether you’re a PAX East veteran or attending for the first time, it may be tricky, downright overwhelming even, figuring out exactly what to bring with you.

Well, allow me to pack for you. Here are some things you must absolutely bring with you this weekend. This stuff, and underwear. You may need underwear.

Portable gaming device

Believe me, whether you’re waiting in line to play a game on the floor, sitting and waiting for a panel to start, or killing time in the bathroom line, you’re going to want a portable gaming system with you.

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If you feel your current XBox console is starting to get a bit long in the tooth and are anxiously waiting for Microsoft to drop some new, shiny hardware goodness, you are going to have to wait a bit longer. Until next year, in fact.

That’s right, Microsoft has confirmed that the next next-gen console, rumored to be called the Xbox 720, will not even be announced or talked about at the 2012 Electronic Entertainment Expo, or “E3″ as we like to call it.

“While we appreciate all the interest in our long-range plans for the future, we can confirm that there will be no talk of new Xbox hardware at E3 or anytime soon,” the company said in a statement. “For us, 2012 is all about Xbox 360-and it’s the best year ever for Xbox 360. The console is coming off its biggest year ever-a year in which Xbox outsold all other consoles worldwide.”

Well, that’s nice for Microsoft. We’re glad they feel the XBox 360 is still a great gaming platform. In fact, it really is. It still manages to offer a lot to gaming developers and the games still look pretty darn good when played on it.

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Even though we love Apple’s iPhone here at The Flickcast, that doesn’t mean we don’t occasionally look at offerings from the Windows and Android world. In fact, if there was a phone other than the iPhone we would use, it would probably be the Galaxy S from Samsung.

Mostly due to the tight integration with Google and the Android OS, the Galaxy S is a smartphone we can see taking the place of, or being side by side with, our beloved iPhones. But up until now, we’ve resisted the temptation.

However, thanks to the diligent folks at BGR, we now know that the Galaxy S III is coming soon and we also know that the specs on this new device are going to be even harder to resist. Here’s the specs:

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Because we can’t spend all our time watching movies, TV shows, reading comics or other indoor pastimes, we occasionally have to venture outside into the world. When that happens, we often need something to entertain us. I’m talking about, of course, toys.

Of course, being the mostly adult, very geek people we are, our toys can’t just be any old run of the mill item. Enter the Parrot AR Drone 2.0 Quadcopter.

The AR Drone 2.0 was announced at January’s Consumer Electronics Show and will be released in May for $299.99. It features a 720p front-facing camera that allows users to capture their flights in HD, and a 3-axis accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer.

The device also features a new “absolute flight” mode that enables users to pilot the Drone by using a smartphone or tablet. the Android and iOS apps can also be used to share flight data with friends.

Limited quantities will be available on April 9 from Brookstone and can be reserved starting today. In the meantime, click through to see the AR Drone in action.

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Sony released its newest console, the Playstation Vita, into the wild today. I got my hands on the console about a week ago, and after some quality time with the system I’m ready to deliver a verdict. Whether you’re thinking about picking up the device today or sometime down the road, read on to hear all about the Vita and what this tiny portable can deliver.

Design

Physically, the device doesn’t look very different from the PSP, but it is much improved. Rounded corners and edges make the Vita fit comfortably in your hands, and the smooth, flat touchscreen on the back is comfortable to rest your hands on. The Vita has the standard controls we’re used to from Sony: left and right triggers, D-pad, circle x triangle and square buttons, and volume buttons on the top of the device.

The big addition is the two, very nice left and right analog sticks that are a huge improvement over the PSP. Another welcome addition is the inclusion of a power button, instead of the power switch on the side of the PSP that I would constantly accidentally hit and turn off the device at pivotal moments in games. The Wi-Fi switch has been removed in favor of an option to turn wireless on or off in the menu.

Sony has done away with UMD discs, in favor of very small, proprietary game cartridges.So far, it seems that purchasing the games via the Playstation Store is the better option, considering there’s a 10% discount for buying digital and by downloading the games you don’t risk losing the incredibly tiny catridges you would get by purchasing a physical copy. Storage is yet again proprietary, and we can’t say we’re surprised about that.

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The Flickcast returned to Toy Fair on Monday to check out the newest figures, games and collectibles coming out in the next year. (Just in case you didn’t see last year’s gallery, check it out here)

Like the announcement last year of a new Thundercats reboot, this year was graced with a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line which we will talk more about in the coming days. We also got to take a look at the newest assortment of Skylanders coming out for this year’s Skylanders Giants. We also had the privilege to talk to the master scribe and artist Todd McFarlane about the latest lines he has coming out this year for Halo and the Walking Dead. Stay tuned for that later this week too.

There was tons of licensing going on this year, see the Dark Knight Returns Mr. Potato Head if you don’t believe us. LEGO also expanded on their licensing of the DC and Marvel franchises with life sized Hulk, Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman pieces as well as further expansion of their Star Wars line.

Surprisingly, Portal 2 had a huge presence on the show floor as well with Companion Cubes, Portal Gun replicas and even Cave Johnson Portraits.

Take a peek below at all this plus way more with our look at the show floor of Toy Fair 2012.

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Take square blocks and build whatever you can imagine, limited only by your own creativity. It’s a description that could fit perfectly with one classic toy franchise as well as one of the most groundbreaking PC games of 2011. For decades, children have put together the little pegged blocks in billions of combinations building castles, cities, vehicles and creatures in ways the creators never could have expected.

For the past year, gamers have dug squares out of a virtual landscape and created everything from replicas of famous landmarks to Godzilla-sized Pokemon recreations. And now, the two franchises which look to be a perfect fit for each other, LEGO and Minecraft, are coming together.

As reported on LEGO’s CUUSOO blog, the Minecraft project has been approved to move on to the product development stages:

Since the Minecraft™ project reached 10,000 supporters on LEGO® CUUSOO, many of you have been eagerly awaiting our update. Until now, the project has been in the LEGO Review—a stage before product development begins where a LEGO Jury evaluates the idea’s feasibility as a product and makes a decision.

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It’s hardly controversial to say that most nerds are not fashionistas. There probably isn’t a lot of demographic crossover between The Twilight Zone and Project Runway. Those nerds who are sew-inclined tend to spend their time on cosplay; their catwalk is the convention floor. The majority of us simply have no idea what fashion is about or how it fits into the Campbellian Monomyth.

It’s not a coincidence that most classic sci-fi depicts the future populace in shiny matching coveralls. We just don’t pay that much attention to clothing. The only thing most nerds wish was in their wardrobes was the magical land of Narnia.

But we have to wear something.

Hence the Nerdy Tee. A simple, classic article of clothing that never seems to go out of style, the T-shirt is the epitome of casual cool. It looks equally at home on a guy or a girl. It can be worn tight for those of us who want to show off our shape or loose for those of us who’d rather not. It’s relatively cheap and easy to launder. And since there’s nothing nerds like more than showing off their obsessions (with buttons, stickers, lunchboxes, action figures, posters, etc.), adorning our T-shirts with nerd iconography is a no-brainer.

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Were you one of many consumers who took the plunge into 3D gaming last year with the release of the Nintendo 3DS? Or were you among those gamers who were waiting for a 3DS Lite- a smaller, thinner, version of the device with a better battery life?

While there’s not much evidence to support this, only speculation, Nikkei Trendy expects that an unannounced 3DS Lite could be released as early as spring 2012.

“To increase the 3DS’s install base,” the magazine writes, “there’s a possibility for a lighter version that addresses the handheld’s weak points, the thickness and the battery life.”

I know I waited for the DS Lite, and was very pleased with the decision. But with the 3DS I got impatient and picked one up. I definitely haven’t regretted the decision, but Nintendo always improves on their products in the second go-round, and if a 3DS Lite is on the horizon, I’m sure it’ll be better (but not bigger) than the current handheld console.

We’ll throw this onto the pile of things we’re waiting Nintendo to release, including the Wii U, introduced during last year’s 2011 and still no definitive release date on the horizon.

Here we are, less than a week away from Christmas, and you’re without a clue for those last two folks you have yet to buy presents for. What’s a loving friend to do? That’s where we are here to help, with some awesome gifts that will be a hole in one for that special geek in your life.

For Him

Sure, there have been plenty of cool gifts out this year, but what about the one that speaks to his inner TV, Fantasy, and Sci-Fi geek? Here’s a good start

Love a good gag? Then the Prank Pack gift box set is for you, complete with practical joke boxes like the iArm, Dream Griddle, or the Beer Beard. Definitely worth a laugh or two on Christmas morning. - $19.99 for 3

HBO has got some great ideas for you to fill those stockings as well. Here are some of the great ideas for guys.

Wish you were Kenny Powers? Then this baseball cap with built-in mullet is for you. – $29.99

Open letters like a true king with this Game of Thrones sword letter opener. Mail is coming. - $19.99

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The PS Vita is Sony’s latest attempt to conquer the handheld gaming market. The technology is impressive, but the marketplace has never been more crowded with the growth of phone and tablet gaming, and the of course Nintendo’s iron grip on portables. The Vita hit stores in Japan last week in advance of it’s early 2012 worldwide release and it made a very admirable showing.

Reuters is reporting that the first two days of the system’s launch saw 321,400 units sold. That number is smaller than the Nintendo 3DS’ initial launch of 371,00 units sold, but is impressive considering the context.

The 3Ds was launching a new technology attached to the incredible successful DS brand. The Vita is coming out after a history of sub par Sony portable devices, including the PSP Go which was a bomb. The sales numbers are very nice for Sony but they need to maintain sales over a few years before the new portable device can be called a win.

In hopes to maintain a strong open for the device Sony has a solid 24 game launch window lineup and will be pushing PS3 to PS Vita connection to make the device a regular part of Sony gamer’s experience.

The Vita will be hitting US shelves in February in Wifi and 3G/Wifi models.

With entertainment technology jumping by leaps and bounds every year, it’s up to the audience to try to keep up with the ever-growing quality of video and audio for some of their favorite music, video games, movies, and TV. Video may be covered by bigger and badder TV’s, but it’s all about lightweight and compact when it comes to audio.

That’s where NoiseHush completely excels. They’re mastered car and mobile audio for the modern consumer, and now they’re tackling gamers and those who need HD audio in a stationary setting such as a bedroom, office, or living room.

With their newest release, the NX26 headphones, you get complete inundation of the deep bass and distortion-free audio you’re listening to and no pinching or pressure that most over-the-ear headphones leave you with.

With soft foam ear muffs and top, there’s no telling that these noise cancellation phones are even on your head half the time.

That’s nothing, however. The best feature lies in the set’s microphone and control button on the lengthy wire. The mic is on-par with some of the top-line mic’d headphones on the market today, and not only will the control button work with your mobile device, but it will control iTunes when the headphones are plugged into your computer.

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