iPhone 12 Pro Max Setup issues

When I tried setting up my new phone by linking with my old phone the connection repeatedly failed after I went through all the annoying setup multiple times.

So, I decided to go the other way and download my last backup. No joy. Going this way it wants the passcode for the iPhone. The iPhone I want to move data from DOES NOT HAVE a passcode.

At this point, I’m really frustrated and don’t know what to do next. (The nephew said I should have gotten an Android)

any ideas ?