Q: iPad transfer - old IMAc, new iPad

Whether you think it is ridiculous or not, unfortunately, it is what it is. Have you tried backing up with iCloud and then restore the backup to the new device?

How to back up your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch - Apple Support

Restore  the backup.

iCloud: Restore or set up your iOS device from iCloud

This might help as well.

Transfer content from your previous iOS device to your new iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support

I know that it's awkward and I wish there was another way, but there isn't.

Apple Configurator: You can also play around with making a backup with Apple Configurator (MacOSX) on your old iPad. Then unplug the old iPad. Insert the new iPad and see if you can Restore the backup. This may allow you to transfer all your content locally without iTunes. This might work best if old and new iPad are on the same iOS, but should work even if the iOS versions are different. Just know that your settings may not translate correctly depending on the iOS version difference.

Once you create the backup, either Import the backup or select it from the Dropdown list under Restore.

Then click Prepare to restore the backup on the new iPad.

For iCloud restore: You can exclude Videos & Photos (or whatever takes up the most space). Backup Videos & Photos manually. You can restore up to 5GB. I had a similar issue and had to restore partially. The other annoying thing is that restores can only happen if both iPads have the same iOS version.

It is what it is.

Apple stop supporting OS X 10.6 and 10.7 long, ago.

And will stop issuing security updates soon for OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion.

What, exactly, is your year and model iMac?

You might be able to install and run either the free OS X  10.11 El Cap or pay $20 U.S.D. to download and install OS X 10.8.5 Mountain Lion onto an external hard drive to boot into a new OS X on an external hard drive and sync and backup your new iPad.

Both newer OS X versions support the latest iTunes.

I do this with all of my iMacs as I still work/run on older OS X that doesn't support the latest iTunes.

I run newer OS X versions from multiple, redundant external hard drives.

Every computer user should have some robust form of external backup, anyways.

You should have an external hard drive for system backups if you have anything on your computer you wish to save for as long as possible.

Also, if your iMac can be upgraded to a new OS X, this maybe a good thing as both Google and Mozilla are ending support for the Chrome and Firefox web browsers for OS X 10.6-OS X 10.8 very soon.

FYI.

Your Mac isn't that old (mine is a 2009 iMac with 16 GBs of RAM and it runs OS X 10.8, 10.9 and 10.11 just fine.

( I skipped 10.10 Yosemite as it didn't have any pressing features that I needed. I thought El Capitán did have great features that I really wanted only to find that Apple is doing the same garbage with OS X as they are with iOS. Limiting what new and cool features will work with whatever model Macs that they have chosen. Most of the OS X versions coming down the pike simply have left out the best data sharing features that I am sure both my 2009 and my wife's 2010 iMac could run, but Apple has chosen to leave our model iMacs out of this compatibilty list.).

Your iMac more than qualifies for upgrading to the latest free OS X 10.11.5 El Capitán.

You have more than enough RAM installed (FYI, your model iMac, can take, at the very least, 16 GBs of RAM and if your 2011 iMac has an i5 or i7 CPU installed, can take up to 32 GBs of RAM)

Any hoo, if you still need Lion, then you need to make a full systems backup to a fast FireWire 800 or Thunderbolt hard drive using data cloning software like Bombich Software's CarbonCopyCloner or Shirt Pocket's SuperDuper cloning software to make an exact bootable copy of your iMac's current system.

OR

Like I stated previously, get a fast data protocol connected and large capacity external hard drive and just format the new hard drive as an OS X extended (journaled) with GUID partition scheme and download and install OS X 10.11.5 El Capitán onto the external hard drive and then boot your iMac to the external hard drive that has El Cap installed.

I would get a large capacity external drive (2 GBs or larger), make three partitions ( one partition for El Cap, another to backup/clone your current system onto and a third partition to use as general data storage area.

This way you keep your OS X 10.7 Lion setup on your iMac's main internal drive.

You have a backup copy of your current system on one  partition on the external drive.

You have a new OS X on an external hard drive to use when you need it on another partition and you have additional external hard drive data storage area on a third partition.

Best online source for quality external hard drives here.

https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/1394/USB/EliteAL/eSATA_FW800_FW400_USB

OR

https://eshop.macsales.com/item/Lacie/9000492U

Every computer user should have a robust, external source for computer data backups if you have ANY long term important data that you need to keep saved and safe from loss.

Also, if you ever want to install more RAM into your iMac this Mac seller is an excellent source to quality, reliable and proper spec'd RAM for all Macs including your year and model iMac.

Good Luck!

Did you do a backup?

Well,

FYI,

OS X 10.7 was not a very good OS X version, at all.

Generally, it WAS slow and buggy and never got much better after it went to 10.7.5.

OS X 10.7-10.7.5 were still kinda a mess and, definitely, felt like an unfinished OS, IMO.

I dumped it after 10.7.2 and waited it out until the next major OS X versions.

I waited until OS X 10.9 Mavericks came out and later, to be able continue using some of my older software that wasn't as stable working on OS X 10.9.5 Mavericks, I went and  reverted back and paid to download and install OS X10.8.5 Mountain Lion.

I think I am one of the few OS X users that really like both Mavericks and Mountain Lion.

Both run great on my older 27 inch screen,2009 iMac. For some reason, though OS X 10.9 takes longer for my Mac to boot, but once booted, it seems to run fine with nary an issue

I have found OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion really was what 10.7 Lion should have been from the getgo, but it still has some PITA issues right up to 10.8.5 that I have to work around, but I find it is very stable on my Mac and all of my older problem software runs a lot better on 10.8.5.

I have OS X 10.11.5 El Capitán, also.

I find it does run faster on my older iMac, as well, but I don't like the flat "PlaySkool" looking icons and the general gray, stark looking UI and windows.

Plus, much of my software won't run on it and the features I wanted to be able to use and take advantage of to use with my newer iPads,  are not available to my year and model iMac.

So, El Capitán is of little use to me.

I downloaded and installed it mainly for use with any iDevices that may need future iTunes versions to sync to it and for those times when I might need it.

I do not know if I will bother with macOS Sierra or not. There will, in all likelihood, not be ANY specialised features for my 2009 iMac to take advantage of.

Plus, I don't see any other compelling base features to bother with OS X Sierra, either.

OS X 10.8 and 10.9 will be my go to OS X versions for some time.

Your iMac year and model has access to all of the new and cool features of El Capitán, so I am a little jealous.

As Far as your Time Machine backup goes, Time Machine, if memory serves, only backs up files, data and applications. Nothing strictly to do with the OS X system.

So, if find any issues/deal breakers with OS X El Cap, you have no way to revert to your previous OS X version.

You will be faced with using OS X Recovery Mode to do a complete reinstall of OS X 10.7 Lion (or redownload it under your purchased history within the Mac App Store) and you will have completely reinstall all of your installed third party software from scratch and will have see if your Time Machine backup data will be able to brought back into 10.7 Lion.

That is why I stressed a new hard drive and cloned, bootable previous system backup.

Too late for that now.