Tethering is a good feature to have access to when the normal WiFi service goes down. However, if you are using your phone for a hotspot you better have a good, generous data plan. I know people with Verizon who pay more than I do for my T-Mobile unlimited data plan, and they only have 2 to 5 GB. That won't last long if you are using the phone as a hotspot for multiple devices. And the phone data over cellular is usually slower than a good landline cable based WiFi connection. Those same people with Verizon tried using their data for streaming movies on their phones and tablets and had all kinds of issues because the movies would pixelate and freeze a lot. And they said they only got to stream 3 or 4 movies per month before they ran out of data. My T-Mobile data is unlimited, but it only streams at about 12 MBps speed and I suspect it would have the same pixelation and freezing issues. My landline WiFi service is 65 MBps and that makes a huge difference! The Echo doesn't do video of course, but listening to music several hours per day will still eat up a data plan.