What method allows sharing a smartphone's cellular data connection with multiple devices?

The correct method for sharing a smartphone's cellular data connection with multiple devices is tethering. Tethering involves using your smartphone as a modem to allow other devices—such as laptops, tablets, or other smartphones—to access the internet via its cellular data connection. This can be accomplished through various means, including Wi-Fi, USB, or Bluetooth tethering, but the concept fundamentally revolves around the smartphone sharing its data connection.

While the term "hotspot" is often used interchangeably with tethering, especially when it specifically refers to creating a Wi-Fi network for other devices to connect to, tethering encompasses the broader concept of sharing a connection, which includes hotspot functionality. Conversely, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct are protocols for different types of data transfer and do not inherently provide internet access in the way that tethering does. Bluetooth can share data between devices but is not typically used for internet sharing, and Wi-Fi Direct enables devices to communicate directly without a router but does not involve sharing a cellular data connection.