I guess I look at this differently, and that's okay I suppose.
When I first saw the Note back in September of 2011, i decided right then that this was the device for me.
I purchased the Note on launch day, and with Gingerbread as the OS. Frankly, I don't much care if the Note gets ICS, because for me it never weighed into my decision to own the device.
When Samsung announced they would be upgrading the Note to ICS, and include a "premium suite" of additional S-Pen apps to go along with the upgrade, this news was just gravy on the cake.
IMO, what makes this device stand out from any other devices on the market is not the OS, but rather the flexibility, efficiency, portability, and usefulness of having a 5.3 inch screen, which in my case eliminates the need to carry and own both a smartphone and tablet.
But, again this is just my situation, and I suppose there are others who see an ICS upgrade as the priority.
Right now I can't think of one ICS device that would cause me to move away from the Note. Primarily because not one of them has a 5.3 inch screen, and note taking capabilities, that renders the purchase of an add-on tablet unnecessary.