Amazon’s recently-launched Kindle Fire has become the primary Android tablet device of interest to developers, displacing Samsung’s Galaxy Tab line, according to the most recent developer survey from IDC and Appcelerator.

According to the survey, the Kindle Fire is the top Android tablet device in North America and second placed worldwide – reflecting the limited distribution of the Amazon device so far. Samsung’s more widely distributed Galaxy Tab ranks second in North America, and first worldwide.

The 49 percent developer interest in the Kindle Fire in North America puts the device only 4 points lower than Apple’s iPad (53 percent) at this device’s launch in April 2010.

A previous IDC and Appcelerator survey found that developers cited price as the single most important factor for Android tablets to compete against the iPad, which was echoed in the assessment of Kindle Fire – price was cited as the main reason for developer interest, ahead of Amazon’s rich content ecosystem, app store, target demographic and e-commerce integration.

Appcelerator and IDC noted that “most tablet manufacturers launched at a US$500+ price point and subsequently ran right into direct competition against the iPad. Today, Samsung isn’t disclosing tablet sales figures, while Amazon shared their impressive numbers after the first weekend.”

The company also noted that Amazon has demonstrated “impressive momentum among developers especially with a 7-inch screen device, when developers have previously expressed overwhelming preference for much larger screen tablets.”

There were some potential flaws with the device from a developer viewpoint, including the fact that it further fragments the Android ecosystem, and that it lacks features such as camera and geo-location – limiting the potential of apps targeting the device. It was noted that “assuming Amazon sells well this holiday season, Android developers will need to consider yet another set of different capabilities.”

Of the other available devices, Motorola’s Xoom was placed third both in North America and Worldwide, with Barnes & Noble’s Nook fourth in the US – the position is held by HTC’s Flyer worldwide.

It was noted that due to the presence of the Nook on the list, half of the top-four Android tablets in use are e-readers (and supported by content vendors), a trend which may become stronger due to the launch of the new Nook and Barnes & Noble’s planned expansion outside the US.