Just a FYI that the Pixel (I have XL) does check for permission to use the wi-fi hotspot when a SIM card is installed (at least with AT&T). After unboxing, I turned the Pixel on without the SIM card and did the basic setup. I turned on the wi-fi hotspot without a problem (of course I didn't have a data connection to share). Then I turned off the phone, installed my ATT SIM card, and toggled the wi-fi hotspot on. It gave me a message about contacting ATT to to enable that function (I don't pay for a wifi hotspot). My N6 did this (which I took care of by rooting and editing two files), but it was bought from ATT so I was curious if the direct from Google Pixel checks. It does.