I find velcro fails the instant it gets a bit of snow or ice on it, which just ends up happening. My shell has velcro flaps over the zipper, but the zipper is the part that's actually doing the work. I've had good luck with Mountain Hardwear stuff, though I have friends that swear by Arc'Teryx. Both are pricey, but if you don't care about colour you can usually get some good sales (my soft shell and hard shell are pink and purple, respectively).

I tend to take my mittens off to do pretty much anything, and it's not really a big deal to expose your hands for a few seconds to do/undo a zip. That said, if you've been happy with velcro in the past then it makes sense for you to stick with it! I would think it'd be easier to buy a regular (zip) jacket and then add the velcro. I don't think velcro-only is all that common, and then you'd have the back-up zipper for when the velcro gets gummed up by ice.