iPhone 17 Pro Max stuck on setup, can’t complete transfer from old iPhone

I ran into this with my iPhone 17. I chose "setup without other device", then entered WiFi credentials to join my WiFi. The iPhone found an update and I installed it. After installing the update, the phone rebooted and then it was able to find my iPhone 8.

Side note: I found a tip from another site that suggested that using a cable to connect the two phones can speed up the transfer process.

Just want to share my experience here... I am trying to transfer the data from the iPhone11 to 17 Pro. The 11 is already on iOS 26.2.1. It seems the 17 Pro came on 26.2 since when I went into the Software Update, it offered 26.2.1.

Before the update, I went through a few cycles and each time I was stuck on the "Looking for Nearby Devices" - I tried both wireless and over a USB-C/Lightning cable. Others recommended restarting the devices and that did not help.

So, I had to basically skip the transfer to get to the screen to connect to Wifi, update and reset my 17. When I restarted, I went through the same thing again but finally got the "Transferring Data from" message. It is transferring now and wish me luck...

We had this same problem. My wife’s iPhone was recognized by her new phone, but then it prompted her to update the iOS. After the update, we could not get past the “Quickly Set Up iPhone” screen, which was stuck on “Looking for Nearby Devices.” I attempted to power off on her phone and try again, but instead of the normal “slide to power off” screen, the screen below appeared. I tapped “Start Over” and was able to complete the transfer from her old iPhone. (Of course, ScreenShot would not yet work on her new phone, so I had to take a photo of her screen with my phone. I took this photo after we got past the “Looking for Nearby Devices” screen.)

Guys, here might be a update.

Make sure only the two devices are close by.

it seems, at least in our case that an other iPhone, and even a iPad was spoiling the party.

The new phone was first looking for devices, and even the "old" phone was close by, the new one still was picking up signals from the other devices.

Even during installation.

After my wife had switched off all the other devices near by all is working.

It seems she is a better tech than me.....

Just want to follow up on this...it worked fine after I did it - via a cable.

"I am on day two of messing around with this new phone. Verizon store is having me do a backup of my iPhone to the cloud. I am on hour 4 of this backup and my phone says it has three hour left to go. Unfortunately, the time counter for this endeavor counts up - not down. At 1:52 p.m. it said 1 minute left to backup and here I am 4 hours later and the counter is up to 3 hours remaining. It gets until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow and then it goes back to Verizon. I am really over this problem."

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Using a Computer:

If it is still stuck, as of this reply, I recommend you plug it into a computer, and perform the update through that --Force Restart it when it is connected to the computer, and while that computer is connected to the Internet. Use my User Tip: Update your iPhone Using a Computer- Apple Community

“Just want to follow up on this...it worked fine after I did it - via a cable.”

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Great job troubleshooting this!

"Just got my iPhone 17pro max today and spent over a hour on the phone with tech support. She had me factory reset, connect to my Mac and attempt to update. Nothing worked. She has informed me to go to AT&T. I have waited over a month for the phone so I guess I won't get a functional phone until Christmas at this rate. I am not happy and regret even getting this phone."

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Try Updating this Through Ethernet:

While connected to a computer, rather than WiFi, connect this to Ethernet, from your computer and into your router. See my User Tip: Update your iPhone Using a Computer - User Tip

TheLittles wrote:

"Side note: I found a tip from another site that suggested that using a cable to connect the two phones can speed up the transfer process."

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Connecting Two Phone to Speeds Up the Transfer:

Don't recall ever hearing of that --what's the site you found this info at?

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/808238/looking-for-nearby-devices/

It's not an official source, so I can't say how reliable it is.

I happened to have a USB-C to Lightning cable lying around, so I connected the phones directly to each other using that and it did seem to transfer quite quickly, but I didn't try it without the cable, so I can't compare. It's quite possible the phones just used WiFi or Bluetooth anyway. There was no indication on either phone as to what communications technology it was using.

Just got my iPhone 17pro max today and spent over a hour on the phone with tech support. She had me factory reset, connect to my Mac and attempt to update. Nothing worked. She has informed me to go to AT&T. I have waited over a month for the phone so I guess I won't get a functional phone until Christmas at this rate. I am not happy and regret even getting this phone.

"Side note: I found a tip from another site that suggested that using a cable to connect the two phones can speed up the transfer process."

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Connecting Two Phone to Speeds Up the Transfer:

Don't recall ever hearing of that --what's the site you found this info at?

Use Ethernet for a Fast, Reliable Connection:

To update through Ethernet, you'll need a cable to do so. Your iPhone can only handle that of Cellular or WiFi --and a router with a direct connection is stable, and less likely to fail. Keep your Mac plugged into the power port, while performing this. Use my User Tip: Update your iPhone Using a Computer- Apple Community

I am on day two of messing around with this new phone. Verizon store is having me do a backup of my iPhone to the cloud. I am on hour 4 of this backup and my phone says it has three hour left to go. Unfortunately, the time counter for this endeavor counts up - not down. At 1:52 p.m. it said 1 minute left to backup and here I am 4 hours later and the counter is up to 3 hours remaining. It gets until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow and then it goes back to Verizon. I am really over this problem.

Has anyone figured out how to solve this issue? Running into exact same thing here described above.