iLounge

Bloomberg News columnist Mark Gilbert says Apple is “missing a beat by outsourcing production of its first mobile phone able to parley with iTunes,” and calls the Motorola ROKR “ugly, chunky and boring.”

The first iPod nano city map has been released—New York City. “This map was a challenge to make,” said the creator. “The iPod Nano’s screen is about half the width of an iPod Photo/Color, but its pixel resolution is similar. Hopefully we’ll be able to make similar maps for other cities just the same.” [via TUAW]

iPod Xtras is offering an exclusive 15%  discount to all iLoungers. To use the discount, which is valid until September 20, type “iLounger” in the coupon field during the checkout process.

TheStreet.com says the iPod will be battling harder for consumers’ holiday dollars this year. “Not only is Sony expected to post strong sales of the PSP, but analysts expect Microsoft to have a big hit with its forthcoming Xbox 360 game console. Further, the overall reduction in the price of flat-screen televisions could lead to a big selling season for those devices.”