In-progress call transfer between a wireless telephone and a wired telephone is effected using a short-range wireless communication link between the devices. Each of the devices are provisioned to include a short-range radio or infrared transceiver so that the devices can communicate with each other over the short-range wireless communication link, preferably using a given short-range wireless protocol. When the wireless telephone's battery is almost exhausted, or for any other reason that the user may desire, the wireless telephone requests the wired telephone's phone number by communicating with wired telephone over the short-range wireless communication link. Upon receipt of the wired telephone's phone number the wireless telephone issues a call transfer request to a cellular base station, passing the wired telephone's phone number. The base station and the network then re-route the call to the wired telephone.