Can you point out a free OR open-source implementation of a phone-home BIOS on a laptop? No. No one can, as there ain't one. And a closed-cource security feature is a scam, plain and simple. I'd stay away from laptops that HAVE that feature, even if "deactivated" (how would you know?) by default.
WillHPower did not make FOSS a requirement; why are you making it a requirement? Can you explain why a closed-source security feature must by a scam?
WillHPower wants to get his laptop back if it is stolen. He's not asking for ideological purity. He knows that if his laptop has a tracking device that the tracking data could be used by law enforcement against him. That's what tracking software does; it tracks. That is not a bug, that's a feature, and is actually the feature he wants to have. Apparently he doesn't wear tinfoil; he's not required to. It is his right as a thinking person to choose to be paranoid, or not be paranoid.
The best solution is some form of hardware lo-jack. Maybe a GPS transmitter that can fit in one of the external ports on his laptop, if that isn't built in already.