How to recover from iPhone 15 stuck on Apple logo

Mockup of an iPhone stuck on the Apple logo

Apple is warning that when moving data to a new iPhone with iOS 17, it's possible to stay stuck on the Apple logo screen. Here's what to do.

The issue is with iOS 17, so it can affect people moving to any new iPhone with that installed. But of course today is when the iPhone 15 arrives in stores, and the first pre-orders are delivered to people, so the greatest number of updates will be to the brand-new iPhones.

"When you choose 'From Another iPhone' during setup to transfer apps and data from your previous iPhone to a new iPhone with iOS 17," says Apple in a new support document, "you might get stuck on the Apple logo."

Apple says the solution is to "reset and use an iCloud Backup to complete the transfer" of data to the new iPhone. While it doesn't use this term, what Apple is really saying is that users need to perform a Device Firmware Upgrade (DFU).

To do this, users have to connect the new iPhone to a Mac, then:

Quickly press and release the volume up button
Then quickly press and release the volume down button
Next, press and hold the side button and keep holding after the Apple logo appears
Let go of the side button when an image of a computer and cable appears
In a Finder window on the Mac, find the new iPhone and choose Restore

This doesn't quite complete the update, though. It will get the iPhone to the regular "Hello" screen, then prompt users through the rest of the setup process.

Apple says that if the new iPhone is an iPhone 15 model, users can then transfer data as normal. That means either from their previous iPhone, or from an iCloud backup.

If the iPhone is an older model, Apple says it needs to be updated from "a fresh iCloud Backup." Users can still make that fresh backup from the old iPhone, but it's always safer to have done so in advance.