Sprint has officially discontinued sales of the Nexus S 4G, we've learned. The recent release of the Galaxy Nexus would be the obvious reason for the move, though some Sprint customers (and Android fans) may still mourn the passing of its predecessor — we've heard many smartphone users say they prefer the 4-inch form factor, and the recent upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich kept it as relevant as ever.

Just days ago, we saw the Nexus S 4G for sale on Sprint's site for free on contract — a tremendous deal considering what you're getting — but it's now gone, leaving would-be buyers to search for remaining stock at third-party retailers. That leaves the lowly LG Optimus S and Motorola XPRT as perhaps Sprint's best free phones, a far cry from Samsung's first Nexus device that set the stage for both Gingerbread and Google Wallet over the past year and a half.