It is reportedly said that Apple is planning to set up Asia Pacific-focused R&D center in Hanoi of Vietnam in the course of 2016 / 2017 to drive up the iPhone sales volume not only in Vietnam but also in the neighboring South Eastern Asian countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Laos, Cambodia and others.

The Apple R&D center in Vietnam will be likely to be the 8th facility that Apple has built up so far in several countries such as the US, UK, China, Taiwan and Israel, and it is estimated that Vietnam R&D center will play a role to develop affordable iPhones customized for price-conscious customers in Vietnam and South Eastern Asian countries.

Apple has been posting some modest smartphone market share in Vietnam at the moment, identified at this report, published under our Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) service.