So... Thought I'd try something, considering everyone else seems to think this is the bees knees. I had been trying rechargeable AA batteries, which as most will know, only output 1.2V, and not 1.5V that regular batteries do, so i went and bought some regulars, and it will actually boot now.
As somebody who would always pick rechargeable over regular, this is a bit of a disappointment, but it at least explains why my experience was different to others