Just reset iPhone 4S and startup takes forever?

I have an iPhone 4S that I completely reset to it's factory default. Now that the reset has completed and the device fully powered down and has tried (well, been trying) to start up again, it won't turn on. There's a dark loading screen that's been going on for a solid two and a half hours now. It's supposed to be powering back on and displaying the traditional "Welcome to iPhone" setup screen, and it usually is only supposed to take a few minutes at most. Is there any solution to this?

If your contract is up, walmart is offering 5C for $1, why not just upgrade?