New Mac on the way - Time Machine questions

Hi there,
My new Mac is now on its way from Apple and I just have a couple of questions regarding Time Machine:
1. My new Mac is a MacBook Pro with retina display which is going to replace an early 2006 Intel iMac running Snow Leopard. I was hoping to use my latest Time Machine backup external hard disk to transfer the data using Setup Assistant as the USB port is the only common connection between the two Macs (other than WiFi which I suspect will be a bit slow when used with Setup Assistant). Will Time Machine use the lastest incremental backup to populate the new Mac, or will it only look to the last full backup (I am only looking to import my user settings, iTunes music and iPhotos)?
2. Going forward, I'm trying to move to a more wireless setup. Previously my iMac used Time Machine on an external USB disk drive, however, I now want to use something like the Western Digital My Book Live connected to my wireless router via ethernet. From searching on the web, it seems this can be a bit hit and miss with both data transfer speed and reliability. I was therefore wondering if any of you guys have had any experience with using an external ethernet hard drive via a wireless router for use with Time Machine, and if so, whether you are able to recommend a particular model. My wireless router is a D-Link DSL-2740R which is ADSL2/2+ and 802.11n compatible.
3. If I do go down the route of the external ethernet hard drive, would it be best to purchase the Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet cable for the initial backup, as I suspect the first full backup would take a while over WiFi.
4. If there are issues with using a network drive, I guess the only other option is to use a Thunderbolt or USB 3.0 drive and then manually force Time Machine to back up when I am at home and can connect the drive (which could mean a while between backups). Unless anyone can offer any other solutions.
Many thanks for any help you can offer. 
Steve

Use the Migration Assistant. Their are specific files not in the application folder that contain preferences and the like. The Migration Assistant will move over those preferences as well as the applications themselves. Plus it takes WAY less time.

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