NP3 is a Teflon impregnated nickel finish, and from what I have read, you can shoot your pistol with little or no lube.
I have owned 2 guns done with NP3 from Robar, a P239 and a P6. The teflon really makes the whole thing feel almost... slippery. It's very smooth and yes, you can shoot it with little or no lube.
Is it worth it? If you decide to sell the gun, it will increase the value, but you won't get what your paid for the plating out of it. On the other hand, if you are just looking to make the gun extremely corrosion resistant, good looking, and very easy to clean.... it does a good job of that.
I have no experience with hard chrome so I can't comment on the comparison. I just used Robar because they are local here in Phoenix. I actually drive past the shop every day on my way to and from work.
Robar as a company is good to work with. The people in the office are polite and one thing I really liked is that they always overshoot their ETA for completion. With complete NP3, they usually say 10-12 weeks. When I dropped my P6, they told me 6-8 weeks, so I figured they weren't super busy at the time. They called me 8 DAYS later to tell me it was done. So that was pretty awesome. I hate it when companies tell you 2 weeks and it takes 4 or 5 months to do something.
