The Samsung Reclaim didn’t exactly get the kind of hype associated with the June launch of the Palm Pre, but Sprint says the eco-friendly Reclaim continues to garner accolades as the “must have” green gift this holiday season.

In a press release, Sprint says the device has been featured in such varied places as O, The Oprah Magazine’s Holiday Gift Guide’s Gifts Under $50; Mommy Blogger Amanda’s Holiday 2009 Gift Guide; USA Today’s Tech Holiday Shopping Guide; and the Treehugger’s Green Gift Guide for the Green Geek, among others.

Sprint says the Reclaim, which was named the “hottest in show” at the October CTIA conference’s Hot for the Holidays program, is the first phone in the United States constructed partly from bio-plastic materials. It’s made from 80 percent recyclable materials and sports features such as one-click access to social networking sites like Facebook and YouTube.

The carrier isn’t putting a big price tag on the device – it’s being offered for free now through Jan. 3 after $129.99 in instant savings, but it does require a two-year contract.

In other Sprint news, at least one analyst believes there’s a low probability that Deutsche Telekom (DT) will buy Sprint within the next two years. In a Pali Research blog post yesterday, analyst Walter Piecyk says “never say never, hence we assign a 2% chance that DT buys Sprint within the next two years.”

In fact, Pali analysts think it’s more likely that DT structures a transaction with the cable companies to use their spectrum to build out a nationwide LTE network in a new joint venture that would provide a healthy alternative to the existing relationship the cable companies have with Sprint today. “To be clear, we put a low probability on that scenario as well, but much higher than a Sprint/DT deal,” he writes.

Piecyk says DT management has reiterated its lack of interest in owning Sprint, but more importantly, it’s unlikely the current FCC would ever approve a Sprint/DT merger.