Patience is indeed a virtue. Looks like the AT&T Galaxy Note will be able to enjoy Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean features through a ROM. You've got JamieD81 to thank for that.

The said developer has put together an AOKP Jelly Bean preview. That means you can enjoy features such as Jelly Bean's acclaimed “smooth as butter” fluid interface, Google Now, a smarter keyboard, better accessibility, an improved notification menu, and a whole lot more.

Unfortunately, it seems that JamieD81 has discontinued the development of this ROM. That means that there will be no future updates. If you're still itching to give your AT&T Galaxy Note a taste of Jelly Bean goodness, you can try this ROM.

In this post, you will learn how to upgrade the Galaxy Note I717 to Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean via an AOKP preview ROM.

Warning

• The instructions in this guide are intended for use with the AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note, model number SGH-I717. Applying these instructions on another device or model may produce undesired outcomes.
• The information in this guide is provided for instructional and educational purposes only. There is no guarantee that these instructions will work under your specific and unique circumstances.
• Use these instructions at your own risk. We shall not hold any responsibility or liability for whatever happens to you or your device arising from your use of the info in this guide.
• Read and understand the whole guide first before actually performing the instructions.

Requirements

• AT&T Galaxy Note SGH-I717 with ClockworkMod Recovery
  • For help, see our guide on how to install ClockworkMod Touch Recovery on the Galaxy Note SGH-I717
• Backup all personal data on your phone to make sure you have a copy of your personal data (e.g., contacts, SMS, MMS, Internet settings, Wi-Fi passwords, and the like) in case the procedure in this guide erases such data.
  • For backup tips, check our guides on how to sync your data to the cloud and how to create local backups of your mobile data.
• Download the following to your PC:
  • AOKP Jelly Bean ROM (AOKP-I717-JB-AUG03-JD81.zip, 147.87 MB)
  • required kernel (h0tkernel-internal.zip, MD5sum: 5b4624ee575b83d98de4a2fa91893979)
  • Google Apps (gapps-jb-20120726-signed.zip, md5sum: f62cfe4a827202899919fd932d5246d7)

Instructions

1. Copy the AOKP Jelly Bean ROM, required kernel, and Google Apps files to your Galaxy Note's SD card
2. Turn off your Galaxy Note.
3. Boot into Recovery Mode by pressing and holding down the Volume Up and Power buttons until the screen turns on. When the screen turns on, let go of the Power button but keep holding down the Volume Up button until the phone enters Recovery Mode.
4. Make an NANDroid backup of your ROM by selecting Backup & Restore and selecting Backup.
5. Select Wipe Data/Factory Reset. Confirm the action on the next screen.
6. Select Wipe Cache. Confirm the action on the next screen.
7. Select Advanced and then select Wipe Dalvik Cache. Confirm the action on the next screen.
8. Select Install ZIP from SD Card.
9. Select Choose ZIP from SD Card and locate the AOKP Jelly Bean ROM file.
10. Once AOKP Jelly Bean ROM has finished installing, select Install ZIP from SD Card again.
11. Select Choose ZIP from SD Card and this time select the kernel.
12. Once the kernel has finished flashing, select Install ZIP from SD Card.
13. Select Choose ZIP from SD Card and locate the Google Apps file.
14. After Google Apps has finished installing, select Go Back.
15. Select Reboot System Now.

Congratulations! You now have AOKP Jelly Bean on your AT&T Galaxy Note. Enjoy Jelly Bean's features!