[ale] [OT] Building a home 'landline' using the cellular network

[Robert Tweedy]

Hi Ale,

I'm entertaining an idea (currently months/years out on implementation, should it turn out to be feasible) of trying to build a simple in-home phone system that would run over a cellular network (specifically one of the GSM networks like AT&T or T-Mobile, so that I could simply swap out the SIM card should I ever want to change providers), and I was wondering if anyone else here has tried to do this and could offer any pointers.

>From what I've looked at so far, it looks like I'd need a GSM gateway or similar device to ultimately make the connection to the cellular network, along with a Linux system running something like Asterisk or FusionPBX and the associated cards/hardware to interface with the POTS wiring inside the house (just looking for a simple party-line style setup at the moment; no need to handle multiple extensions/numbers and no desire to buy expensive VoIP/business-class phones). Any suggestions on where to start with something like this, or any pitfalls that you may have experienced when setting up something like this yourself?

Thanks,
Robert