You won't see a telephone switchboard these days unless you go to a museum. When telephones were still operated exclusively on hard lines, switchboard operators worked at hubs along the telephone grid where they sat in front of a switchboard full of jack receptacles. As calls came through, the operator would ask the caller who she wished to talk with, then plug a jack into the appropriate receptacle to establish a connection. Digital versions of switchboards are still used in hotels to direct calls to particular rooms.
A residential switchboard is a small specialty device that is most often used to redirect incoming current through a meter before the current goes to an end use. Residential switchboards can be equipped with a breaker feature that shuts off current in the event of power overloads, but that is not their main purpose. Homes that are equipped with solar arrays or that are subscribed to a net-metering service that sells home-produced electricity back to the grid often use a switchboard in conjunction with a meter to keep track of energy use.
Most homes have at least one distribution switchboard, which is generally called a breaker box. The distribution switchboard is situated between the incoming current and the distribution branches that reach into the home. The distribution switchboards are also equipped with a "breaker" feature. Larger enterprises that are big energy end-users also use distribution switchboards; and some of these are large enclosed frames the size of wall locker arrays, containing complex distribution arrangements, internal monitors and various safety systems.
Ships and boats have special needs that have to be considered in the design of switchboards. Not least of these design considerations is that ships and boats are exposed to a lot of water. Ships use large, enclosed switchboard assemblies similar to those for big end-users that have been specially outfitted with waterproofing inside and out. Sailboats and yachts do not require the large systems, but must use specially fitted and specially organized electrical switchboards to meet the unique configuration and electrical distribution needs of the boat.