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I'm looking for a way to convert my Android phone into a telephone switchboard.

The goal is to have the ability to redirect incoming calls to another telephone number. But if this is not possible (I don't know if any Android terminal is able to redirect calls in real-time), perhaps there is an intermediate solution: the mobile pick up the telephone, launches a recorded message ("Please, say what is the purpose of your call"), waits until the user says something, and then put a music loop until somebody picks up the telephone.

I don't know if I explained :) But the final goal is to substitute an expensive internal switchboard with an inexpensive cell phone network driven by an Android phone. Is there something similar?

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I was looking for something similar and it is hard to find one that would work for Android.

However, it is not so expensive to have a really good phone switchboard, you may use a very old computer with a phone modem and utilize the landline, for example, you can get an almost-for-free, an old PC computer from garage sales or bank or company that is in the process of updating their IT systems, (like a Pentium II or III).

Then install either Windows XP or Linux alongside a PBX server which you can download for free for both systems. Sure it will take a little bit of time and patience to configure, but the end result will be worth it if done properly.

A switchboard that will change a PC at your office to a desk phone. Even, you can also have an intercom facility as well (where users can call each other without using land line just over your LAN - just PC to PC), even you can join remote branches or offices into one phone system.

Then you can have internal numbers like 1214 or of your own preference and choice, and share the one line over many users, and the most beautiful part is that there's no need to make new wires and get phone sets!

Search for 3CX (for Windows) or Asterix for Linux.

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Not quite what you are looking for, but Google Voice will let you forward calls to other numbers based on time of day or defined "groups" of people that call you. Essentially, it will "ring all the phones" you want it to and then you pick up on any of those phones. For example, you could have a mobile phone, a work phone, and a home phone. You could have Google Voice ring all three phones at once when someone dials the Google Voice number.

Also, US only.

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  • Thanks but the "US only" is a showstopper :) Anyway, it seems to show that is possible to redirect calls in real time.. interesting
    – Ivan
    Commented Dec 9, 2011 at 17:35
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    @Ivan: Except it's not the phone that's doing it, it's the Google Voice service (which used to be Grand Central). I really doubt you're going to be able to do what you want in the limited hardware in an Android. That's why switchboard systems are so expensive.
    – ale
    Commented Dec 9, 2011 at 18:39
  • @AlEverett: Uppss.. So there is a real switchboard behind Google Voice. Thanks for the info. Anyway, I'm not an Android programmer, so I don't try to do it, just looking for something that help me save some money in my bussiness :)
    – Ivan
    Commented Dec 9, 2011 at 19:42

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