How is that circuit easier than the ones used by the chips I suggested above?
It is not. It is a circuit I've wondered about for some time now, as an option for powering 5V single board computers, at several amp currents.
I did not intend to imply it was better than the previous recommendations; I just wanted to add something to consider.
The datasheets are full of instructions and examples and the chips themselves are much simpler than "everything but the kitchen sink" of those TPS chips. He doesn't need power good and TRIP pins and other features, he wants a dumb 7805 replacement.
Perhaps, but I don't do "shut up and answer the question"; I always explore the context. The additional viewpoints tend to provide value, even though now and then they are complete misses. Statistically, thus far it has been worth it.
The same circuit as the one I showed (with different resistor, capacitor, and sometimes inductor value) keeps popping up in my webench experiments, trying to find an efficient hobbyist-DIY-able DC-DC converter to 5V and 3.3V. But, I can't seem to find existing projects or schematics using those chips. Aside from the chip itself being a bit scary to solder (by someone not familiar with hot air soldering, and who does not have an oven for soldering), the circuit looks
interesting, and I'd like to know more. Just by soldering one together, without having any way to measure EMI and such, or detect any gotchas known to those experienced with such circuits, I wouldn't learn much by myself.