New APPLE TV stuck in activation cycle?

not sure if this will help you but i had the same problem with my atv but i managed to sort it by going from... being connected by ethernet to connected by wifi. once i was on my wifi it took seconds. maybe you could try something similar? or in reverse? on the activation screen you can press the menu button to skip passed it and this will get you into the main menus. you can use the atv fine from here (i think) but you cant do any software updates (i found). to get back to the activation screen go into settings then general and then reset and choose reset all settings. that'll get you back to the chosse language menu. hope this helps.

I have had the same problem with the activation not setting itself at all. The "wheel of death" just spins endlessly until it defaults to the screen saver.

I called Apple Customer Support three times total over the span of 6 weeks, trying to get help. The first guy said that my router was outdated (WPA only) and I needed to get a newer one with WEP2 capability. SO, I bought one ($110 Linksys EA3500). Installed it, tried setting up the Apple TV. Oops, nope; didn't work. The wheel of death is still spinning endlessly.

This time I called Linksys (Cisco Systems) for help. They ran me through the router installation from scratch; still no Apple TV. Meanwhile they upsold me the one year service plan (instead of the included 90 days) for $19.95. I figured that I could have more problems later; pay them a little now or a LOT later. Apple TV is not working still. I call Apple CS again and this time I'm told that certain ports - especialy TCP 123 - have to be "open" in order for it to work. He sent me the link to an Apple bulletin detailing exactly which ports should be open. Apple TV: TCP and UDP ports and protocols used

After calling Linksys/Cisco once again for help in opening those specific ports (and with them still on the phone line), I gleefully turned on my Apple TV. NOTHING but the wheel of death! At this point, I've been on the phone with Cisco for over an hour. They once again upsold me to their "specialists" at a company Supportrix. For only $39.95 I will receive expert assistance that WILL take care of my problem. Ok. What the heck. Fine.

The very helpful man at Supportrix spent over an hour with me on the phone. He put me on hold several times for extended intervals. (By the way, he has remote access to my computer) Another hour and a half later, nothing. He said that the router was functioning properly and as it should be. All the correct ports are open and there is no reason he can ascertain as to why Apple TV won't work. He asked me to call Apple CS (while he held the other line) to explain all that we had done/attempted to accomplish.

Exasperated, I called Apple CS once again nicely but with a desperate tone to my voice. I asked the Apple tech if he had a record of all my calls and the steps I had taken to accomplish my mission. He had all the notes, thankfully. He said that unless and until I could get the date/time to stamped upon the Apple TV module, it simply was not going to function. We ran a speed test on my computer/router on speedtest.com. My computer and router were both functioning within the recommended parameters in three different areas of my house: immediately in front of the Apple TV module; on the sofa six feet away; and immediately in front of the router - two walls and twenty-five feet away. All good reads. As a last gasp option (in order to determine if the module was defective), he advised me to either take the module to a friend's house who has a good internet/router connection, trying to connect it there. OR take it to an Apple store's Genius Bar.

I told the tech at Supportrix all this, thanking him for his assistance. Call over.

Next, I made an appointment at my local Genius Bar - assuming that it was defective.

On a last gasp whim, I searched (on the Apple TV module) for available networks in order to attempt to connect it to one of those networks. I found my next door neighbor's/good friend's network (I knew their password) and logged into their router. VOILA!!! IT WORKED!!! I was able to see all the features of Apple TV and even log onto my iTunes account. My music from my computer played through it and everything. Getting hopeful now!!!

But, now I'm left to ponder the situation: Should I keep it logged onto my neighbor's router OR attempt to run Apple TV through my router just one more time before I take it to The Genius Bar. I very fearfully and relunctantly left my neighbor's network and ran it through my own (I had to do the right thing here). To my delight and glee - and everything else that is holy - IT WORKED!!! I got all the features of Apple TV through my own network. To be sure that it wasn't a one-time fluke, I turned the Apple TV module off (General Settings>Sleep Now), crossed my fingers and anything else that would cross then turned on the module again. IT WORKED!!! Needless to say, I was ONE happy camper!!! And it's STILL working!!!

So, through all this tedious story I wish to advise anyone out there to try the same thing...the FINAL thing that is.

The only thing that I can deduce from this is that when I attempted to set it up the first time on my old WPA-only router that it froze out my log in attempts from the network name. Possibly, it 'locked out' my new router because I had attempted to log on several times through it - without success). I only changed the network name slightly (added a number) upon activating the new router. A new router (I have no idea what brand) must have opened the flood gates of the information superhighway to it.

If you're exasperated and about to throw it, throw it away, take it back to Apple or take it to the target range - try this! Who knows: You might get as lucky as I did!

I was stuck at activating, too, and pretty much out of ideas.

I've got wireless, but use a wired connection to the atv.

After seeing this thread, and without restarting my atv, I unplugged the ethernet cable.

It was an instant fix. :-)

Thanks,

Jeff