A docking station, which connects a cellular telephone with one or more landline telephones, includes a connection switch configured to detect a condition of at least one landline of a premises and to establish a connection with a landline based on a detected condition, an interface configured to connect with any of a plurality of types of cellular telephones, and a processor configured to control a plurality of functions of the docking station and to communicate with each of the plurality of types of cellular telephones. An electrical characteristic of a cable or a wireless module connected to the cellular-telephone interface is used by the processor to identify a type of a cellular telephone connected to the docking station. The processor is programmed to enable a landline telephone connected to the docking station to send or to receive calls via the cellular telephone connected to the docking station, based on an identified type of the cellular telephone connected to the docking station.