When evaluating data performance, there are other factors to consider, such as throttling and deprioritization. Yes, they are different things. Here are some quick definitions: Throttling: All mobile plans—even unlimited data plans—have data caps. If you go beyond your cap, you'll experience significant slowdowns (like going from 4G LTE to 3G speeds). These slowdowns will affect everything, including your mobile hotspot data. Deprioritization: Some mobile plans—usually cheaper, prepaid plans—come with a risk that their data speeds will be deprioritized, or slowed, when the network is busy. This happens during peak use hours or in really crowded, urban areas.