I use the 910XT in a very cloudy part of the world (which I'm assuming makes things worse). I've just integrated the startup time into my prep.

Before I put my running stuff on, I turn on the watch and let it figure stuff out while I'm taping my nips, and if it's winter, gloves, tights, mentally bracing myself for the cold, etc.

Same here, I've got a Garmin watch and it's great once it finds satellites, but routinely takes well over 5 minutes to do so (in NYC). I've started using my iphone to track runs and bike rides instead, only using the Garmin for really long bike rides where I don't mind the wait and having my current speed on my wrist is worth the wait.

I used to have to wait for a fix as well. What works for me is that when I'm preparing for the run, I put the watch in a window for enough time to get a fix, which sometimes take a long time. Then when I go out to run later, it gets a fix pretty quickly.

The new models lock really quickly. I have a Garmin 620 and it locks within 30 seconds. Cloudy days might take a minute, but basically by the time I finish my warmup walk, it's locked on.

It's a lot better than the 310XT. I don't think it's taken more than a minute of standing still in the last few months. I do tend to start in pretty open sky'd places though.