Apple test driving a street-mapping car, or is it a self-driving car? You Decide

Could Apple enter into closer competition with Google by rolling out its own street maps version? According to reports, Apple rented a car which was covered in cameras and scanning equipment and was spotted driving around the Bay Area.

According to San Francisco's CBS affiliate, the California Department of Motor Vehicles said that a series of Dodge Grand Caravan bristling with cameras have been leased by Apple.

These vans have been spotted around San Francisco and the East Bay towns of Clayton and Concord. Photos of the vehicle were first posted online by Bay Area blog Claycord.

Claycord, however, noted that the Apple car looked similar to a self-driving Dodge Caravan spotted in New York in September 2014. Technology analyst Rob Enderle, who spoke to KPIX, also agreed that it's a self-driving car rather than a mapping car.

"(There are) too many cameras," said Enderle. "It has cameras that are angled down at all four corners of the vehicle."

However, AppleInsider and 9to5Mac report that only six companies have permits to test self-driving cars, and Apple isn't one of them.

Enderle notes that just because Apple does not have a permit does not mean it cannot work on its own self-driving car project, especially since Apple has a variety of partnerships with car manufacturers who just might have secured a permit.

"It can be a partnership," Enderle said. "Just because they're leasing the car doesn't necessarily mean it's their project."

A similar car to the one spotted in San Francisco was also captured on video in New York last year.