Difference between the LM1117-5 IC packages

A UBEC (Ultimate Battery Elimination Circuit) is basically a step-down voltage regulator. I feel that the jargon deserves a bit of explanation and history, so here goes:

In hobbyist grade remote control cars/planes/boats/etc. the electronics (receiver, speed controller, servos) need a power source. With engine powered craft, a small 6V battery pack was used to power the electronics. When electric motors became more popular, people wanted to use the large motor battery packs to power the low-power electronics. Typically, the electronic speed controller absorbed this function, and it became known as a Battery Elimination Circuit (BEC). With battery packs usually in the 9V-11V range, the electronics would probably need 5-6V to be happy.

Evidently there has been a push to use higher voltage battery packs (10V-25V), probably to take advantage of the brush-less motors. As a result, if the servos draw any appreciable current, a linear regulator would burn a lot of power. Obviously, when your flight/driving time is based on how efficiently you use your battery, a linear regulator is not what you want. Ultimate Battery Elimination Circuits are basically separate regulators (usually switch-mode) that deliver 5V-6V at hopefully high efficiency.

Now for the comparison. Your parts basically have two different end-use requirements. The Dimension Engineering product tries to match the form factor of a common linear regulator (7805). It would probably integrate better with any finished PCB you would make, and has a metal shell which hopefully shields EMI. The Hobbywing regulator is a more cost-conscious physical design, with a bit better efficiency spec. Honestly they're pretty much the same thing, so you could probably go with the cheaper one (Hobbywing).

A level shifter is usually a part that converts digital signals from one logic standard to another. It might also be called a translator. For example, the MC14504B converts TTL logic signals to CMOS levels, and a MC10H607 converts PECL signals to TTL. A level shifter isn't meant to provide power, it can only source as much current as its target logic levels require.

The terms voltage regulator and dc-dc converter are somewhat overlapping. Classic linear regulators are almost always called regulators. Linear regulators can only be used to produce a lower voltage from a higher one. Switching supply circuits might be called regulators or dc-dc converters. (Purists might claim that the regulator is just one part of a dc-dc converter circuit. That is the regulator is what provides the feedback control, whereas the dc-dc converter is a complete circuit including external magnetics, switching transistors or diodes, etc.) Switching supply circuits include different types that are able to produce either lower or higher voltages from an input voltage.

To produce 2.5 V from 5 V, you can use either a linear regulator or a "buck" switching converter.