Many iPhone users have reported frustration when trying to transfer data from their old device to a new one, with the process often failing. The issue appears to be common among those upgrading to the latest models, such as the iPhone 17 series.
According to experts, the root cause is often that the new iPhone has been sitting on a shelf for an extended period, meaning its operating system is outdated. The recommended fix is to complete the initial setup as quickly as possible, then update the operating system, and finally perform a factory reset.
After the reset, the phone will restart as a new device, allowing users to select the data transfer method—either from iCloud or directly from the old phone—and the process should work successfully.
On Reddit, users shared their relief after following this advice. One user said: “Thank you so much for this. I was struggling so bad and was close to giving up.” Another commented: “Yes, this worked! For iPhone 14 Pro, migrate to iPhone 17 Pro. The iOS needs to be identical for the migration to work.”
A third user added: “iPhone Pro Max 13 just couldn’t find iPhone Pro Max 17. After upgrading software on both phones and following this instruction everything worked perfectly! Thanks for post! Saved me.”
