It is possible or okay to flag a question as a duplicate if it was asked earlier, and the one asked later already has an accepted answer but the context is very similar:

Consider this question:

How do I connect Internet from a laptop using USB modem to a Galaxy S3, or directly USB modem(data card) to S3 for internet connection? (2012)


Share Wifi over USB (2016) (with accepted answer)

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Yes, it is.

Especially with the examples quoted, all the more so. Older question is not clear and OP didn't revise to make it clear. Only answer to that is based on a supposition of OP's intent. Newer question is clear in intent and has a detailed answer (with a bounty awarded )

Marking the older question duplicate of the newer one would benefit those who land up at older question.

Timeline doesn't matter - what matters is that a clear question with upvoted / accepted answer remains with other question being marked duplicate. If both of them have good answers and questions are similar in content, it should be flagged for merging ( This is my understanding from moderators in chats)

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    Spot on. We want the best question/answer to become the primary. – Matthew Read Mar 27 '17 at 18:23
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    And while mergers are rare, they happen from time to time. I vaguely remember @MatthewRead did one a couple of years ago #D – Izzy Mar 27 '17 at 19:55

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