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For me, the main value of a hardback is that you can use it for display on your bookshelf to impress your guests, and it won't fall apart after two years on the shelf. Hardbacks are those books I think I might wish to retain for reference. I purchase very few of them now that I'm retired and I've impressed everyone I might invite into my home.
Paperbacks often have inferior, glued bindings that can dry out, crack and release pages, especially if subjected to thermal cycling in a vehicle. Most are intended to self-destruct for obvious reasons which is why most libraries avoid them.
Then there's the potential obsolescence of electronic books with DRM crippling about which enough has been written.
So it really depends on what I intend for the book and what that intention is worth to me. There is no format that meets all criteria (permanence, price, portability).
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