Brendan, no matter what kind of regulator you use, dissipated heat will always be the same because it is function of the input/output voltage difference and amount of current through regulator. That's how all linear regulators work.
What can be done is better thermal management, for SMD parts that means using larger area of PCB for heatsinking.
Off course, one should not exceed maximum allowed power dissipation of used voltage regulator.
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