NEW DELHI: Chinese handset maker Oppo is planning to hire over 500 engineers to support its newly launched research and development (R&D) center in Hyderabad over next few years as it looks to strengthen its market presence in India by bringing more localised products and services.The BBK Electronics-led brand has a plan to make this facility its largest out China in the coming three years. It will not just focus on handsets but will also contribute significantly towards products like smart watch and Internet of Things ( IoT ) products that the company plans to launch next year.“India market is growing very fast, and we want to get deeper consumer insights to offer a better experience that will help our business,” Tasleem Arif as the Vice-President and Head of R&D at Oppo, told ET.The new facility will initially be focusing on software related R&D, and will also provide a platform to start-ups and smaller companies to build a local ecosystem. “We are looking at partnerships across verticals to develop relevant solutions for our products,” he said.While the executive didn't share the investment figures for the local R&D unit, he said that it is being set up as part of the global R&D strategy, which is seeing a total investment of $1.43 billion globally to work on 5G, Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things.Oppo has already hired a team of 50 people for this new facility. The executive said that the company is hiring more engineers from IITs and other institutes.“We are concentrating on software in India, especially our Color OS. The center will initially focus on the localisation part. It will also provide inputs to the headquarters on software,” Arif added.The executive further added that the facility will also focus on networks to make device more compatible with India’s cellular networks, besides enhancing the device performance. “The third focus is to work on camera capabilities for our products,” he said.Oppo has been focused on the camera-centric phones category to tap young consumers in the country. Vivo, which is another BBK company, is also focused on the camera-centric phones segment.Oppo isn’t the only Chinese company that is focusing on R&D strength in India. OnePlus, which is India’s leading flagship phone brand, has also announced its R&D center in Hyderabad and plans to make it operational by early next year.Similar to Oppo, OnePlus too wants to grow its India facility to become its largest out China in the world by focusing on software development by leveraging India’s software strength.Analysts said that the R&D focus of these Chinese brands gels well with the manufacturing focus of mobile handset companies in India. Oppo is planning to expand its manufacturing capabilities in India by launching a bigger facility in Uttar Pradesh.“For handset companies, the focus on setting up new R&D centres is the next natural extension of their ongoing India strategy. It also showcases their commitment to India as a growth market, and their continued intent on investing in, developing and leveraging made-in-India innovations,” Cybermedia Research’s Head- Industry Intelligence Group (IIG), Prabhu Ram said.