Unless you write your text messages deliberately composed, in multiple paragraphs, and it takes days to send and receive, the comparison is very flawed. More long-form digital communication, like email, is a bit closer to letters, though.

Which brings me back to my point that text chats are equivalent to a spoken conversation and should be treated as such, and not be kept forever. Especially not printed out as a gift. You wouldn't give someone close a video of them sleeping or leaving for work over last 3 years (even if you saw them do it), nor a map of their movements from a GPS tracker (even if they told you where they are going), because that does not respect their boundaries nor privacy.

Although after reading some responses, no doubt some people will think of those as "cherished memories".