I use blockchain.info for my easy-to-access online BTC wallet. As I have an encrypted backup of the wallet saved elsewhere, its uptime isn't life-or-death either.

It will be particularly interesting after a year or so to see what qualities of an altcoin make them successful.

Treat faucets as a way to get involved with the currency, not as a way to profit. However, I imagine you wouldn't be disappointed if you were one of the first people to use a Bitcoin faucet where you would get more per "usage".